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A UTHOR : 
 
 TITLE: 
 
 STRONG REASONS FOR 
 REJECTING THE ... 
 
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 GIVEN, 1884, BY PEITHOLOGIAN SOCIETY. 
 
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STRONG REASONS 
 
 lOR RIJECTING THE 
 
 ROMAN CATHOLIC CLAIMS, 
 
I wjK^iH ■smi-i 
 
 i n . ,i im. « ■ 
 
 STRONG REASONS 
 
 FOR REJECTING THE 
 
 I' 
 
 I 
 
 i 
 
 t 
 
 ROMAN CATHOLIC CLAIMS; 
 
 \ 
 
 AND 
 
 \ 
 
 INCONTESTAElLfe PROOFS 
 
 V 
 
 ..,r- THAT THE 
 
 POPISH RELIGION IS NOW AS IT EVER WAS, 
 
 Dwftietilp DastOe to tlje jprotestants, 
 
 WHOSE 
 
 TOTAL EXTERMINATION 
 
 ONE OF THE ROMISH BISHOPS HAS DECLARED TO BE 
 
 NEAR AT HAND. 
 
 " As to the Papists, their tenets are undoubtedly calculated for the introduction 
 of all slavery, bothnr/7 and religious.^' ^^^^ Blackstone. 
 
 Therefore, " To design the advancement of Popery, is to design the ruin of the 
 State, and the destruction of the Church; it is to sacrifice the nation to a double 
 slavery ; to prepare chains both for their bodies and their minds," 
 
 Bishop Sherlock. 
 
 :y 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 PRINTED FOR J. J. STOCKDALE, 41, PALL-MALL. 
 
 1813. 
 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 4 
 
 Ii 
 
 If 
 
 Vigurs, Prinfer, 5, Princes Street, 
 Leicester Square, London. 
 
 Si 
 
 SECTION I, 
 Introductory p o 
 
 SECTION II, 
 The NATURAL RIGHTS of Man. and how far they may be 
 exercised in civil Society j. 
 
 SECTION III. 
 Toleration ; hoic far consistent with our civil Constitution, 
 and the preservation of the Protestant Religion, to extend it 
 to those of the Popish Communion j^ 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 The inhuman scenes which Roman Catholics have acted should 
 operate as a powerful learning to all Protestants, whether in 
 the Established Church or out of it. The most spirited exer- 
 tions necessary, at this critical moment, to prevent a repetition 
 of the same bloody tragedy 33 
 
 SECTION V. 
 
 Popery hostile to Civil and Religious Liberty ^ichile it acknow- 
 ledges the sovereignjurisdiction of the Pope, and the power of 
 Popish Priests to forgive the greatest enormities, it leads its 
 Votaries, not only to break their promises and oaths, but to 
 foment rebellion and murder. Its doctrines naturally tend to 
 the subversion of every Protestant Government. . . 43, 
 
 o o L b o 
 
6 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 ^SECTION VI. 
 
 The protestations of the Roman Catholic Petitioners, in hc^ 
 half of themselves and of their Brethren, respcctin-: the su^ 
 premacy and infallibility of the Fope, and priestly absolution, 
 not to be depended on ; because it has been always the custom 
 of the Church of Rome, when invested with power, to break 
 throu<rh their most solemn engas^cments with Protestant States, 
 to depose their Princes, and persecute their heretical Subjects, 
 
 62, 
 even unto death 
 
 SECTION VII. 
 
 Roman Catholics not to be admitted to any share in the Govern^ 
 mcnt, 1. Because they cannot swear complete allegiance to 
 the Kintr, ivhosc supremacy they consider as an usurpation 
 upon a foreign Potentate, to whom they are bound to submit-^ 
 2. Because this substruction of their allegiance to their tem- 
 poral Prince, and their obedience to the spiritual power of 
 the Pope, has been confirmed by loner and uniform experience 
 —3. Because the most dangerous and extravagant pretensions 
 
 ' have always been acted upon by the Popes, and arc not, to 
 this daii, officially disclaimed, but maintained in their full 
 extent, by the Popish clergy in Ireland^4. Because their re- 
 li^ious principles, so very different from those of the P rotes- . 
 tants, must render them unfriendly, if not decidedly inimical 
 to our Church-establishment, which, consequently, may be 
 subverted, if they become the stronger party in the State— b. 
 Because it would be nugatory and incongruous to refuse to 
 the King himself. Hie liJyerty of professing the Romish re- 
 licrion, or even of marrying a Papist, should he be allowed the 
 
 choice, or exposed to the hazard, of being advised, and of 
 transacting the affairs of Government, through the medium of 
 Popish Ministers and Counsellors. Therefore, 6. The 
 prayer of the Petition involves, in its consequences, the substi- 
 tution of the Pope's supremacy for that of his Majesty's, the 
 repeal of the Act of Settlement, «wrf the two Acts of Union; 
 and finally, the overthrow of the whole Constitution. 109 
 
 ii: 
 
 CONTENTS. 7 
 
 SECTION VIII. 
 
 Some religious opinions of the Roman Catholics, lohich are so 
 repugnant not^only to reason, but to " the Scriptures of Truth," 
 that it would be sinful, in any Protestant Government, to con- 
 sider those who hold thc7n as entitled to the same civil immu- 
 nities which those of the Established Religion enjoy, 198. 
 
 SECTION IX. 
 
 An answer to those ivho contend, that the Claims of the Catholics 
 should be complied with, on account of their numbers, 
 strength, and opulence ; and that such a concession is neces- 
 sary, in order to conciliate them, to quiet all disturbances, 
 and to promote peace and unanimity in Ireland, The adop- 
 tion of the innovations proposed, ivould iiew-model the Con- 
 stitution—violate the principles of the Reformation, and the 
 Revolution — discontent the loyal Protestants of Ireland, 
 (who have preserved and strengthened the connection between 
 
 the two countries J and ?iot content the Roman Catholics 
 
 would create division, confusion, and discord — might unsettle 
 the ecclesiastical and lay property of Ireland — revive all 
 those mischiefs which the Revolution was calculated to re- 
 dress—and, in short, might destroy the present Establish- 
 ^^^^' , . . . . 210. 
 
 SECTION X. 
 
 The Catholics have not been a peaceable and loyal People, since 
 the Revolution; but, turbulent, refractory, and rebellious, 
 continually plotting against the Establishment, and fre- 
 quently embruing their hands in the blood of inoffensive Pro- 
 
 testants, 
 
 250 
 
 SECTION XI. 
 
 The Popish Religion always the same ;m Hi fates stronQhi aminst 
 every Church a?id Stqte not in communion with it, 278. 
 
8 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 / 
 
 SECTION XII. 
 
 Expediency and absolute necessity of continuing the Test-Acts, 
 in their full force.— The Popery-Code already too much 
 relaxed and infringed 352 
 
 Appendix, 
 
 373 
 
 STRONG REASONS 
 
 AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 i: 
 
 SECTION J. 
 
 Introductory. 
 
 The Petition of the Roman Catholics of Ireland, undoubt- 
 edly, involves a question of the highest importance to the 
 5>tate. It 18 a question of the greatest magnitude which ever 
 came before Parliament; and. I may add, that it is one in 
 which every individual is interested, in a degree not immedi- 
 ately perceivable by superficial observei-s. This therefore 
 would sulficiently justify any man in coming fonvard with 
 such reflections, as he may conceive to be well founded, and 
 worthy of attention; but. in truth, the conduct of the Peti- 
 tioners themselves, has made it perfectly unnecessary to seek 
 such justification; for. by the very terms in which their Pe- 
 tition IS worded, and by the appeal which they make, not 
 merely to the wisdom and liberality of Parliament, but to the 
 broadest of principles, to justice, utility, and sound policy, in 
 their fullest extent, they demand the strictest investigation 
 JNay. by the publicity which they have endeavoured to <.ive to 
 the.r claims, not only by printing and dispersing their Petition 
 but also by paragraphs and essays in the daily papers or in 
 sepai-ate publications, they provoke inquiry: and they even 
 appear to rest their hopes of final success on the influence 
 Which the public opinion must always have upon the national 
 
 

 10 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 >.* 
 
 1'. 
 
 councils, in such a country of freedom as ours, and which tlicy 
 expect, in this instance, to be exerted in their behalf. 
 
 The importance of this question will be still more apparent, 
 if we reflect on the consequences which must necessarily result 
 from the ground on which it is rested; for, the Petitioners ar- 
 gue upon a system of comprehension the widest possible. It 
 is one which, among other novelties, has, of late years, ob- 
 tained a degree of popular favour, from it§ seeming liberaUhj. 
 Of this system, however, I beg leave to observe that the adop- 
 tion, by the Petitioners, must unavoidably awaken suspicion ; 
 since it is wholly mconsistent with the religious^ principles in 
 which they have been educated: and, if they are determined 
 on maintaining it, they must, of course, maintain it in its ut- 
 most latitude; because it is plain, that, if they should suc- 
 ceed in obtaining their object, it will be ins possible, at least 
 for those who grant it, to contend, that any sort of restriction 
 of the same nature can be continued upon any other descrip- 
 tion of his Majesty's subjects, or even upon his Majesty him- 
 self. It involves, therefore, in its consequences, a direct 
 change of the Constitution, as settled at the glorious Revolu- 
 tion. 
 
 This, of itself, must prove, to every thinking man, that the 
 matter is extremely momentous, and therefore should be 
 maturely considered. It must also shew how necessary it is 
 for every one who will judge rightly, to set himself above pre- 
 judice. He must neither be caught by specious professions, 
 nor deterred by the fear of unjust reproach. 
 
 The author would scarcely have ventured to lay his thoughts 
 before the public, on a subject which has so much engaged 
 the attention of " the High Court of Parliament," if he had not 
 consulted ditferent books, and extracted from them what he 
 judged more worthy of notice than his original matter. From 
 the debates in the House, also, concerning the Catholic ques- 
 tion, he has principally formed his opinions; and, having ex- 
 pressed these generally in the language of the learned speakers 
 themselves, he trusts this will be considered rather as a strong 
 recommendation than a disparagement of the. work. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 11 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 The NATURAL RIGHTS oj Man, and how far they may he exer- 
 cised, when h^is considered as incorporated with civil Society. 
 
 Principles, destructive of all order and regularity have 
 of late, spread their baneful influence through the United 
 Kmgdom; the consequence of which may, some time or 
 other, be the horrors of a civil war. In this critical situation of 
 affairs, ,t is the duty of every honest man to stand up in defence 
 of our admirable political system, and to contribute, all in his 
 power, to save his country from impending ruin. In order to 
 eflect this, the bulk of the people should be made acquamted 
 with their real interest, and be persuaded against giving way 
 to the insidious sophistry of visionary theorists, and the seduc- 
 tive arguments of ill-designing men, who, under plausible pre- 
 texts, are daily undermining our Constitution. 
 
 Among other pernicious opinions which have been indus- 
 triously circulated, it has been often obtruded upoa us that 
 er.;y man has a natural ri.ht to a share in the .ocernme.^ of 
 that ami community of which he is a member. Hence the Ro 
 man Catholics of Ireland, in their Petition to Parliament, open- 
 ly declare, that " their sole object is, to have an equal parti- 
 cipation, upon equal terms, with their fellow-subjects, of the 
 full benefit of the British Laws and Constitution." It there 
 fore becomes highly necessary to consider narrowly what are 
 the absolute rights of man. 
 
 " These," (says Judge Blackstone. in his celebrated Coni- 
 mentanes on the Laws of England.) " are usually summed 
 up in one general appellation, and denominated the natural 
 liberty of mankind, considered as free agents, endowed with dis- 
 cernment to know good from evil, and witK power of choosinsr 
 l^ose measures wh.ch appear to them to be most desirable 
 i his natural liberty consists properly in a power of acting as one 
 thinks fit, without any restraint or cpntrol, unless by the law 
 
 
r 
 
 F 
 
 i-:j 
 
 STRONG REArOXS AGAIKST 
 
 f 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 la 
 
 
 of nature; being a right inherent in us by birth, and one of 
 the gifts of God to man at his creation, when lie endued hini 
 ^vitll the facuUy of free-will. But every man, when he enters 
 into society, gives up a part of his natural llherlu, as the price 
 of so valuable a purchase; for, the principal aim of society ij*, 
 to protect individuals in the enjoyment of. those absolute 
 rights, which were vested in them by the immutable laws of 
 nature; but wliich could not be preserved in peace, without that 
 mutual assistance and intercourse, which is gained by the in- 
 stitution of friendly and social communities. Hence it fol- 
 lows, that the first and primary end of human laws is, to main- 
 tain and regulate these absolute rights of individuals. And, 
 in consideration of receiving the advantages of mutual com- 
 merce, eveiy man oblij^es himself to conform to those law^s, 
 which the community has thought proper to establish. And 
 this species of legal obedience and conformity is infinitely more 
 desirable, than that icHd and sacage liberty which is sacrificed 
 to obtain it. For, no man, that considers a moment, would 
 wish to retain the absolute and uncontroled power of doing 
 whatever he pleases; the consequence of which is, that ever}' 
 man woukl also have the same power; and then there would 
 be no security to individuals in any of the enjoyments of life. 
 Political or civil liberty, therefore, which is that of a member 
 of society, is no other than natural liberty, so far restrained by 
 human laics (and no farther) as is necessaiy and expedient for 
 the general advantage of the public. Hence we may collect, 
 that the law, which restrains a man from doing niischief to 
 his fellow-dtizens, though it diminishes the natural y increases 
 the cir/V liberty of mankind. 
 
 "'The idea and practice of this political or civil liberty flour- 
 ish, in their highest vigour, in these kingdoms, where it falls 
 little short of perfection, and can only be lost or destroyed by 
 thefollv or demerit of itsow^ner; the legislature, a^id of course 
 the laws of England, being peculiarly adapted to the preser- 
 vation of this inestimable blessing, even in the meanest subject 
 
 " The rights of the people of England may be reduced to 
 three principal or primary articles; the right of personal secu' 
 
 rity, the rh^ht of personallibcrty, and the right of private pro- 
 pcrty: because, as there is no other known method of compul- 
 sion, or of abridging man's natural free-will, but by an infringe- 
 ment or diminution of one or other of these important rigMs, 
 the preservation of these, inviolate, may justly be said to in- 
 clude the preservation of our civil immunities, in their largest 
 and most extensive sense. Aitd all these rights and liberties 
 it is our birth-right to enjoy entire; unless where the laws of 
 our countr}^ have laid them under necessary restraints^re^ 
 traints in themselves so gentle and moderate, that no man of 
 i^ense or probity would wish to see them slackened. For, all 
 of us have it in our choice to do every thing that a good man 
 would desire to do; and are restrained from nothing, but 
 what would be pernicious either to- ourselves, or our fellow- 
 citizens. So that this review of our situation may fully justify 
 the observation of a learned French author (Montesquieu), who 
 hath not scrupled to profess, even in the very bosom of his 
 native country, that the English is the only nation in the world, 
 tcherc political or civil liberty is the direct end of its Constitution. 
 And, therefore, I shall close my remarks with the expiring 
 wish of the famous Father Paul to his country, esto per! 
 petua!" 
 
 From the preceding observations of the learned Judge, it 
 clearly appears, that, to toleration in the exc^rcise of his reli- 
 gion, to the security of his person, property, and natural liberty 
 every subject (except under imminent circumstances) has an 
 unquestionable right: beyond this, the claim of exercising poli^ 
 tical power would lead to such an extent as to render it quite 
 untenable. ^ 
 
 The question, then, in this case, is not of right, but of expe^ 
 diency; and, surely, all well-ordered Governments are at liberty 
 to nni)ose any restrictions which they deem necessary for the 
 securuy of the public good. This is a right which they have 
 ;xerns.d, and ^./// exercise, in defiance of all the new theories 
 in defmice of the doctrines of the rights of man. 
 
 Every society has an inherent right to frame such rules, and 
 \Ppoint such lawful means as it thinks best calculated for the 
 
 t 
 
 # 
 
 t^' 
 
mmm 
 
 14 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 H 
 
 preservation of its existence and prosperity, and the promotion 
 of those ends for which it was instituted. This every consis- 
 tent Protestant will grant; for it is the unalienable right of 
 private judgment, which must be allowed to all men in their 
 coUectite, as well as individual, capacity. 
 
 If, therefore, every community, as well as exery private person, 
 has a natural principle of self-i.lefence, which it is incumbent 
 upon it to exert, in order to preserve itself from destruction ; it 
 must undeniably follow, that every attempt to commit violence 
 upon, or make any innovations and alterations in, its undoubted 
 rights and privileges, must be an usurpation, or an illegal and 
 unjust exertion of poiccr. It is an assumption of liberty, sub- 
 versive of society itself, and destructive of all liberty tchatsocver. 
 It is to arrogate a liberty of overthrowing and destroying all 
 fundamental laws, and regulations; whenever a favourable 
 opportunity offers to carry into execution the dictates of pri- 
 vate views. 
 
 I will endeavour to illustrate this matter by a very familiar 
 and obvious instance. For a moment admit the supposition 
 which is continually intruded upon us by our adversaries, 
 nanaely, that of a club in a village, which has established rules 
 of association. Others solicit admission into it. The proposal 
 meets with the ready acquiescence of all the members, t^pon 
 condition of conformity with the regulations which they hate 
 fixed upon. Their maxims of administration and management 
 are produced for their subscription. The solicitants disap- 
 prove of the articles, and insist upon being gratiiied with an 
 alteration of them. In this circumstance of the case, the pre- 
 sident may be supposed to address them in such words as 
 these; " Gentlemen, we cannot possibly comply with your 
 requisition, as we believe the due observation of the conditions 
 of our agreement essential diXiA even necessary, to the exist- 
 ence and welfare of our society : and in this we follow the 
 real and genuine dictates of our minds," 
 
 Now, have the members of this institution offered the peti- 
 tioners any undue treatment, or injury? Have they deprived 
 them of any natural, unalienable, and inherent rights? Surely 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. I5 
 
 not-common sense revolts at the idea: but, on the contrary 
 the petitioners have treated the others with indignity, insult, ^n^ 
 outrage, by demanding such a change as would be productive 
 of conjuswn, tumult and disorder, and which might end in the 
 dissolution of their society. 
 
 The point in question is exactly parallel: for, the Roman 
 Catholics require the Legislature to favour them so far as to 
 alter their fundamental laws, and thereby to endanger the Con^ 
 stitution. But how can this be expected! 
 
 They appear to entertain a notion common to many persons 
 that power is a ^natter of property; and that a man is as much 
 entitled to a share in the Government, as he is to be the holder 
 of lands and goods. But it should be remembered, that the 
 grievance complained of is merely the exclusion from the 
 great offices of State, and some of the subordinate places 
 m the administration of justice, and, in some sort, from Cor- 
 porations. This is treated as if the Petitioners were thereby 
 deprived of their most valuable rights; whereas, if this ex- 
 elusion be necessary for the maintenance of the State it is 
 even beneficial to the Petitioners themselves. Every body 
 must know, that it is often expedient to take power out of the 
 hands of the people, for their own sakes, lest they should abuse 
 It to their own destruction, as well as to that of others. What 
 incapacities and exclusions are there not created eveiy time 
 that a qualification for office is imposed ? And yet who talks 
 ot this as an injustice? How many men, nay, how large a 
 proportion of the people are cut off from sitting in Parliament 
 merely because they have not three hundred a year of landed 
 J)roperty ? 
 
 The matter in debate is simply this, whether there are good 
 grounds for the restriction; for, if there be, it is not only h.al 
 but equitable and just. "" 
 
 What alone the generality of mankind are entitled to, is the 
 due and regular administration ^f the laws; that they should 
 be administered with impartiality, and a strict regard to justice. 
 And, therefore, in the present imperfect state of our nature it 
 has been found conducive to this end, to devise and impose 
 
 W 
 
« h 
 
 16 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CAJHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 17 
 
 certain checks upon the governors themselves, as well as upon 
 the governed; so that not only the Parliament, but even the 
 King, who is the head of the nation, cannot violate the laws 
 with impunity. 
 
 I will not then allow the situation of the Petitioners to be 
 what they state it, full of" manifold evils," ** humiliating and 
 ignominious;" a frustration ** even of the privileges wiilch thty 
 are capacitated to enjoy." A disadvantas^e it may be ; but if so, 
 it is one inseparable from the profession which they have 
 chosen to adopt. They have subjected themselves to en<ra ce- 
 ments, which materially interfere with their allegiance to tiitrir 
 Sovereign, or, at least, are, or have been, supposed by tlie Le- 
 gislature so to do. 
 
 ^ The true question is, (as I have observed before,) whether 
 this supposition be w^ell founded; whether it ever was so; or, 
 having once been so, whether it has now ceased to have a foun- 
 dation? 
 
 The natural way of proving this, would be to shew from 
 facts, that the State has actually never been put in danger by 
 the Roman Catholics; that they never either rebelled or plot- 
 ted against the Government ; or that, if there have been any 
 ^•machinations of that sort, in which any of their body have 
 been implicated, it has been simply as detached individuals, 
 and not Wnien acting at all in concert, or under the influence 
 ofanycofnmon motive; more especially that their motives or 
 conduct have been no way connected with their opinions in 
 religious matters, or their dependence upon the Pope. 
 
 But this is a mode of proof which I presume the Petitioners 
 will riot attempt to give ; because the historical annals, both 
 of England and Ireland, would most effectually contradict, and 
 confute it. 
 
 I shall conclude this part of the subject in the words of 
 Bishop Newton: " Liberty is indeed a glorious thing; but to 
 such a pitch is it now carried, that it is liberty run mad — it is 
 licentiousness, and not true liberty. Lawless liberty is the curse 
 of the land — liberty and law must stand or fall together." 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 Toleration; how far consistent with our c/t-// Constitution, 
 and the preservation of the Protestant Religion, to extend it 
 to those of the Popish Connnunion. 
 
 An intolerant spirit, in matters which concern our souls, 
 cannot be the spirit of Christ: for, when the blessed Author of 
 our " }>ure and undefiled religion," (which breathes nothing 
 but " peace upon earth and good will towards men,") first 
 called his Apostles to promulge it, one of them thus addressed 
 him : " Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and 
 we forbad him, because he followeth not with us: but Jesus 
 said unto \\\\w, forbid him not; for he that is not against us, is 
 for us." Lu. ix. 49. Christians, therefore, of all denominations, 
 should quietly permit each other to w^orship their " common 
 Lord," according to the dictates of their own consciences. 
 " To his own master" every man must "stand or fall;" and 
 every man has an indubitable right to embi-ace, after much 
 serious deliberation, whatever doctrines he judges to be most 
 conformable to the word of God, without being responsible to 
 any human tribunal. 
 
 ** The Act of Toleration" (says Bishop Newton) " was one 
 of the first fruits of the glorious Revolution. It may be con- 
 sidered as one of the corner-stones of our Constitution; and 
 care ought to be taken how we remove it, or even meddle with 
 its foundation." But he adds, " Whilst w^e allow free exercise cf 
 faith and opinion to all the different sects of religion, it should 
 be under certain I inntatio ns 'dnd restrictions, for the safety of 
 the Government established by law. Government ought to de- 
 fend and protect itself, as well as its shH)jects; and nothing cer- 
 tainly is more fitting and reasonable, than that if any are sus- 
 pected of bearing enmity to it, at the same time that they enjoy 
 protection irom it, they should give security for their good 
 behaviour." 
 
 U: 
 
18 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 19 
 
 Let it be attentively obsened, that when such political 
 opinions are blended with tlie profession of Christianity, as 
 are evidently calculated to overturn the established re- 
 ligion of the country we live in, and to render the pro- 
 perties, and even the lives, of its numerous adherents unsafe, it 
 then becomes the indispensable duty of the magistrates and 
 public ministers of that religion, to guard against the encroach- 
 ments of these destructive opinions. While we abstain from 
 meddling with the religion of others, we are certainly bound, 
 both in policy and in conscience, to maintain our own. 
 
 Hence, in the year 1780, there was a " Protestant Asso- 
 ciation" formed; and, in their "Appeal to the People of Great 
 Britain," they thus freely delivered their sentiments. "Alarmed 
 at the indulgence granted to Papists, by the Acts lately 
 passed in their favour, and well persuaded that the principles 
 of Popery deserve no such encouragement from any Protes- 
 tant state ; we feel for ourselves, we tremble for posterity : 
 and, having maturely deliberated on the consequences that 
 most probably will result from this indulgence, we think it a 
 duty we owe to religion and our country, to associate; and, 
 by every lawful method, to procure a remedy for the evils 
 apprehended from its operation, and to preserve the inesti- 
 mable privileges, which, as Christians and members of society, 
 we enjoy. 
 
 " If the doctrines held by Papists were confined to matters 
 of opinion in religion, and did not include jmlitical tenets of 
 the most dangerous tendency, they might expect the same 
 connivance, which has generally been extended to other 
 erroneous sects: they might bow down to their images, 
 swallow the absurd doctrine of transubstantiation, and amuse 
 themselves with dreams of purgatory, without interruption : 
 their ignorance and superstition would rather excite com- 
 passion, than expose them to the consequences of any Penal 
 Statutes. 
 
 " But, when Papists thunder out their anathemas against 
 all who will not submit to their creed— when their religious 
 profession itself breathes the veiy spirit of persecution and 
 
 cruelty towards those whom they are pleased to style Heretics 
 —when they believe that princes may be deposed, and their 
 subjects massacred, for the good of the Church— avowing such 
 principles as these, what security can be given to any state 
 for their peaceable behaviour ? And what claim can they 
 have to unbounded toleration, under any Protestant Govern- 
 ment ?" 
 
 Dr. Haweis, who is one of the strongest advocates for 
 tolerating all religious sects, whilst they "presume not to 
 transgress the Civil Laws, or disturb the peace of the society 
 in which they abide," concludes his Essay on the subject 
 thus. " Let it be acknowledged as a truth highly honourable 
 to the Church of England, as by law established, that scarce 
 under any government has toleration been more generally 
 and liberally allowed, than under its auspices, at this day. 
 Thankful for the mercies we enjoy, every man of reflection, 
 considering the years that are past, can hardly desire a 
 cAawo-e, whatever imperfections may be chargeable upon it. All 
 human institutions have been imperfect— ^/^era^/ow^ arc dan- 
 gerous. None of our sectaries, when in power and office, 
 have given a specimen of equal liberty." 
 
 One of the most judicious men that ever England produced, 
 (John Locke,) in a long letter which he wrote and published, 
 on the subject of toleration, allows it in its utmost latitude, 
 not only to all the professors of the Christian revelation, but 
 even to Heathens, Turks, and Jews, as far as their religious 
 tenets and modes of worship are concerned. But though he 
 declares, that " he esteems toleration to be the chief chamc, 
 teristical mark of the true Church," yet he strojpgly insists 
 upon it, that if any notions be entertained which are injurious 
 to Government, all those who hold them should be exempted, 
 from the liberty given to others. 
 
 Aft(.r iirst mentioning, that "no opinions contrary to 
 human society, or to those moral rules which arc necessary to 
 the pn serv^ation of civil society, are to be tolerated by the 
 magistrate," he then makes the following observation : 
 " Another evil more dangerous to the commonwealth, is, 
 
 lil 
 
20 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 I • 
 
 '• 1 
 
 
 I-' . 
 
 
 when men arrogate to themselves, and to those of their own 
 sect, some peculiar prerogatives, covered over with a specious 
 show of deceitful words, but in effect opposite to the civ:i 
 rights of the community. For example. We cannot lind that 
 any sect teaches expressly, and opeuly, that men are not 
 obliged to keep their promises ; that princes may be dethroned 
 by those who differ from them in religion ; oi c'lat the do- 
 minion of all things belongs only to themselves. For, these 
 things, proposed thus nakedly and plainly, would soon draw 
 on them the eye and hand of the magistrate, and awaken all 
 the care of the commonwealth to a watchfulness against the 
 spreading of so dangerous an eviJ. But, nevertheless, we 
 find those that say the same things, in other words. What 
 else do they mean, who teach thdit faith is not to he kept with 
 heretics? Their meaning, forsooth, is,* that the privilege of 
 breaking faith belongs unto themselves: for they declare all 
 that are not of their communion to be heretics, or at least 
 may declare them so when they think fit. What can be the 
 meaning of their asserting, that kinos excommunicated forfeit 
 their crowns and kingdoms? It is evident that they thereby 
 arrogate unto themselves the power of deposing kings ; 
 because they challenge the power of excommunication, as the 
 peculiar right of their hierarchy. That dominion is founded 
 in grace, is also an assertion, by which those that maintain it 
 do plainly lay claim to the possession of all things. For 
 they are not so wanting to themselves as not to believe, or at 
 least as not to profess themselves to be truly pious and faith- 
 ful. These, therefore, and the like, who attribute unto the 
 faithful, religious, and orthodox (that is, in plain terms, unto 
 themselves), any peculiar privilege or power above other 
 mortals in civil concernments, or who, upon pretence of 
 religion, do challenge any manner of authority over such as 
 are not associated with them in their ecclesiastical commu- 
 nion ; I say, these have no right to be tolerated by the magis- 
 trate; as neither those that will not own and teach the duty 
 of tolerating all men in matters of mere religion. For, what 
 do all these and the like doctrines signify,4)ut that those men 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 21 
 
 muy be and are ready, upon any favourable o<icasion, to 
 seize the .irovernment, and possess themselves of the estates 
 and fortunes of their fellow-subjects; and that they only ask 
 leave to be tolerated by the magistrates so long, until they 
 find themselves strong enough to efiect it ?" 
 
 Let us now attend to the judgment of that great luminary, 
 and shining ornament, of jurisprudence. Justice Blackstone,' 
 upon tuis interesting point. Speaking of the Protestant 
 Dissenters, who, though " they had once, within the compass 
 of the sixteenth century, effected the ruin of our Church and 
 monarchy," yet, says he, " certainly our ancestors were mis- 
 taken, in their plans of co7npulsion and intolerance. The sin 
 of schism, as such, is by no means the object of temporal 
 coercion and punishment. If, through weakness of intellect, 
 through mis-directed piety, through perverseness and acerbity 
 oftemper, or (which is often the case) through a prospect of 
 secular advantage, in herding with a party, men quarrel with 
 the Ecclesiastical Establishment, the civil magistrate has 
 nothing to do with it, unless their tenets and practices are 
 such as threaten ruin or disturbance to the State. He is 
 bound indeed to protect the Established Church, by admit- 
 ting none but its genuine members to offices of trust and 
 emolument; for if every sect were to be indulged in a free 
 communion of civil employments, the idea of a National 
 Establishment would be at once destroyed, and the episcopal 
 church be no longer the Church of England. But, this point 
 being once secured, all persecution for diversity of opinions, 
 however ridiculous or absurd they may be, is contrary to 
 every principle of sound policy and civil freedom. The 
 names and subordination of the clergy, the posture of devo- 
 tion, the materials and colour of the ministers' garments, the 
 joining in a known or unknown form of prayer, must be' left 
 to the option of every man's private judgment." 
 
 Again he says : " All persecution and oppression of weak 
 consciences, on the score of religious persuasions, are highly 
 unjustifiable, upon every principle of natural reason, civil 
 liberty, or sound religion. But care must be taken not to 
 
22 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 23 
 
 carry this indulgence into such an extreme, as may endanger 
 the National Church; there is always a difference to be 
 made between tolerating and establishing.** 
 
 He further remarks, •* what has been said of the Protestant 
 Dissenters would hold equally strong for a general toleration 
 of the Papists, provided their separation was founded only 
 upon different opinions in religion, and their principles did 
 not also extend to a subversion of the civil government. If 
 once they could be brought to renounce the supremacy of the 
 Pope, they might quietly enjoy their seven sacraments, their 
 purgatory, and auricular confession, their worship of reliques 
 and images, nay, even their transubstantiation. But, while 
 they acknowledge a foreign power superior to the sovereignty 
 of the kingdom, they cannot complain if the laws of that 
 kingdom will not treat them upon the footing of good sub- 
 jects." 
 
 The present worthy Bishop of Durham, in the first debates 
 on the Catholic question, expressed himself thus. " It is 
 essential that we should resolve to preserve inviolate and 
 sacred the principles of the Establishment, and to extend that 
 toleration, forbearance, and Christian charity, which are its 
 distinctive marks, to their utmost practicable limits. But, at 
 the same time, let us pause, until we have well considered the 
 guards which the law of the land has placed over our Estab^ 
 hshment: and, whilst we sedulously grant every reasonable 
 indulgence to the scruples of the conscientious, let us not 
 attempt to break down, or even to weaken, any of the barriers 
 of our religious and political constitution, but be determined 
 to keep them whole and entire. For, if the bulwarks be in 
 part removed, how will the other separated and insulated 
 parts be protected ? If, while it is entire and connected, it is 
 the object of attack, if we liave even now to exert ourselves in 
 its defence and to rally round the citadel, to avert the danger 
 which threatens it, what hope will remain to preserve it, in its 
 broken and mutilated state ?" He then concluded his speech 
 in these striking words. ** On these grounds," (he had men- 
 tioned many more than are here specilied,) ** I conceive the 
 
 Pet.t.on of the Romaft Catholics to be inadmissible ; and I feel 
 rnyself compelled to reject it, from a sense of duty to the 
 Estabhsned Church (which, in my conscience. I believe to be 
 the bestconstitnted Cluirch which the world ever saw)-from 
 a sense of duty to that civil form of Government under which 
 I bless God that I was born and live-ami from a sense of duty 
 to my country." 
 
 To the same effect spoke the Archbishop of Canterbury.. 
 I consider toleration," (said he,) « as the greatest ornament, 
 and brightest grace of that reformed Church which is estab- 
 lished in this kingdom, but cannot prevail upon myself to con- 
 found toleratioH with equality, much less with power and 
 e,M superiority. It was not a figure of rhetoric. l>ut a 
 plain fact, resting on historical evidence, that toleration is a 
 Virtue growing naturally out of a sense of security, and cannot 
 exist lor a moment, where dauger is apprehended. If there- 
 fore, the Parliament should determine to destroy those fence, 
 which the wisdom and experience of our ancestors had with 
 so much deliberation and care, erected around the Established 
 Church It would then do effectuaf/y (though unintentionally, 
 no doubt) all that was in its power to excite and provoke that 
 bad spirit of animosity, and religious intolerance, that marked 
 and disgraced the worst pages of English history, subsequent 
 
 to the reformation Those who are tolerated cannot 
 
 share the power of those who tolerate I„ the benevo- 
 lent temper of our toleration, we do not restrain the exercise 
 of any religious profession : but we feel and know that our 
 own reformed religion is most congenial to the spirit of our 
 free Constitution ; that the protection of the one is the protec- 
 tion of the other ; and. above all things, that it would not be 
 safe to admit, within the pale of ourgovernment and legislature' 
 a most numerous body of people, who profess a religion essen- 
 tially adverse to our own. The tests pesciibed by the wisdom 
 ot our predecessors had nothing to do with toleration; thev 
 were framed on the plain and evident presumption, that he 
 who receives the sacrament of the Church is of the Church - 
 In this « enlightened age," (as many prondlv call iti Hera/- 
 
 '.I 
 
 T 
 
 i: 
 
 1 
 I 
 ! , 
 
 t • 
 
t 
 
 24 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 25 
 
 J' ' 
 It 
 
 ity i« the order of the day, and toleration is now the great sub- 
 ject of debate both in Parliament and out of it. Nay, the 
 Catholics themselves, who have been always reckoned (and 
 very justly too) the most bigoted and merciless among all the 
 various denominations of Ciiristians, now put on the appearance 
 of moderation^ and good-will towards Protestants. Accordingly, 
 in their Petition to Parliament, for what they call Catholic 
 Emancipation, they ** solemnly assure that Honourable House, 
 that their eainest solicitude for it, at this peculiar crisis, arises 
 principally from their anxious desire to extinguish all motives 
 to disunion, and all means of exciting discontent** — and again, 
 that " they are deeply anxious, at this moment, that a measure 
 should be accomplished which will annihilate the principle of 
 religious animosity, &c.'* Woult to God, that" the Ethiopian 
 had changed his skin, and the leopard his spots !** But, alas, 
 there is too much reason to fear that they continue just the 
 same they were ! 
 
 Shortly before the discussion of their Petition in the United 
 Parliament, ** Remarks*' were published upon it, " by a. Pro- 
 testant from Ireland, on a visit to England.** In the first page, 
 he says : 
 
 " The writer of this pamphlet, little expected that, during a 
 short visit to London, he should feel himself compelled to enter 
 the lists of controversy ; but, on looking over the Catholic Pe- 
 tition, and examining the sentiments it contains, he was not a 
 little surprised, that the Protestants of Ireland, who have 
 every opportunity of knowing, should be total strangers to 
 the liberal sentiments professed by the Petitioners; and he 
 was almost ready to enquire, if a new race of Roman Catho- 
 lics had sprung up in Ireland, since he left that country — as 
 they appeared of a very ditferent stamp from any with whom 
 he was acquainted.** 
 
 This surprise was increased, on observing the names of the 
 committee appointed to present this Petition ; for there he 
 found ** the names of some, who, notwithstanding their high 
 professions of liberality and candour, have but lately left it on 
 record, that such are not in reality their virtues. Every 
 
 Protestant will soon be satisfied on this head, by reading Mr. 
 Scully's work just published, and another by the Re^ Mr. 
 Gahan, in Dublin, and printed by the printer to the Roman 
 Catholic College. It will easily be perceived, from the 
 perusal of these books, that the sentiments contained in the 
 Petition, are not the sentiments of the Roman Catholics in 
 Ireland, unless they have recanted and renounced those opi- 
 nions, which they maintained only a few months since. 
 
 " It is well known, that Mr. Scully is one of the delegates 
 nominated to superintend the management &: the Petition in 
 London, and that he lately wrote an Address to his Brethren 
 in Ireland. I shall therefore give a few extracts from it, to 
 let the Protestants in the united kingdoms see how far the 
 sentiments, contained in the one, correspond with the other. 
 
 " In reading the Petition, one cannot help being struck 
 with the greatest appearance of moderation and unity, and 
 with the thought tl^at several of the most obnoxious doctrines 
 of Popery are abjured, and even declared ' not to be articles of 
 the Catholic faith: Many decrees, of councils, however, and 
 extracts from the most famous writers in the church of 
 Rome, might be brought to prove, that these doctrines have 
 been imposed as articles of faith: but, for the present, I shall 
 confine myself to the examination of the sincerity of the pro- 
 fessions made by the Petitioners, to liberality of sentiment, and 
 their claim to further toleration. 
 
 " When Mr. Scully published his work, called. An Irish 
 Catholic's Advice to his Brethren, I was led to expect that the 
 contents would have corresponded with the motto he selected 
 on the title page.-* I perceive no reason why men of dif- 
 terent religious persuasions may not sit upon the same bench, 
 dehberate m the same councils, or fight in the same ranks, as 
 uell as men of various and opposite opinions upon any con- 
 troverted topic of natural philosophy, history, or ethics.* 
 Archdeacon Paley's Philosophy. 
 
 " * We know tiiat toleration is odious to the intolerant • free- 
 dom to oppressors ; property to robbers; and kinds and de^ 
 
 
iiS 
 
 ^ 
 
 STRONG HfiASONf^ AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS 
 
 grecs of prosperity to the envious.' — Burkes Speech infatoiir 
 of Catholic Emancipation. 
 
 " Wiien men undertake to plead for toleration, they cer- 
 tainly should not make themselves appear intolerant. .Now, 
 if the Counsellor had been sincere in his professions of libe- 
 rality, I cannot think that he would intimate (as he does in 
 the above extract) that the • members of the Established 
 Church are intolerant, envious, oppressors, and robbers. 
 Surely, he would not have endeavoured to hold-up to con- 
 tempt, a large number of /)e«ccY7i>/e, loyal Protestant subjects 
 in Ireland, as a mark of indicrnation for Catholic pikemeu ; 
 what tolerant spirit is it, to compare such to plunderers, mur- 
 derers, and invaders ? What loyalty and attachment is this to 
 our glorious Constitution, when the immortal King William is 
 styled a DUTCH INVADER, and the Roman Catholics of 
 Ireland applauded for lighting against him, and in favour of 
 the Popish Prince James ? Let the reader judge from the 
 following quotations, if such an address from a Catholic 
 counsellor to his brethren in Ireland, is calculated to promote 
 harmony ; or, to use the language of the conclusion of the Pe- 
 tition, to * annihilate the principle of religious animosity, and 
 animate all descriptions of his Majesty*s subjects, in an en* 
 thusiastic defence of the best Constitution that has yet ever 
 been established/— Let Mr. Scully speak for himself. 
 
 " Page 12. * It is now 112 years since the capitulation of 
 Limerick to William the Third; it was the last place in Ireland 
 or England that surrendered to him ; and never was a place 
 more gallantly and obstinately defended, than Limerick has 
 been by our loyal ancestors ; who, with Sarsfield at their 
 head, fought for their hereditary King James, against a 
 DUTCH INVADER, and his hired battalions. France had 
 long amused the besieged with promises of succour, — no suc- 
 cour came, and the brave garrison, after enduring incredible 
 hardships, were forced to give up, witl> breaking hearts, their 
 last possession in their country ; but not without having ob- 
 tained, and deservedly, glorious terms of capitulation. The 
 
 27 
 
 Frer^h fleet came (as they have always come to THEIR 
 FRIENDS J ,when there was nothing to be done, when all 
 was over.' 
 
 " Page 43. • Oliver Cromwell (of infamous memory) 
 brought over to Ireland a republican army of pillamg, 
 hypocritical, canting knaces, similar in manners to the bands 
 of Swadlers* that now infest our towns.— They were the 
 turbulent spirit, and the refuse of England at that time; 
 WRETCHES whom ' no King could rule, no God could 
 please.' You see what misery that army caused here— their 
 tailors, tmkers, smiths, coblers. drummers, and trumpeters 
 after the slaughter of one hundred thousand persons, obtained 
 various estates and lands among us. while the native Protes- 
 tents, who had invited them over, and the Catholics, who 
 had NO crime to answer for, were trodden under foot by 
 their mvaders, and suffered to perish by their intestine feuds 
 unpitied m their disgrace, or neglected in their poverty' 
 Even just so will the French invaders trample upon and des- 
 pise us, ,f we do not drive them back into the ocean like 
 rats, as we are well able to do, IF we please.' 
 
 " That Swadlers, or Methodists, or Protestant Dissenters 
 are not the only people in Ireland for whom Mr. Scully has' 
 no moderation, is evident; for Protestants of the Established 
 Church, are as much reproached, and as unjustly censured 
 In speaking of the loyal Protestant societies, or associations 
 for the support of the Constitution, hear his language in page 
 95 : • A very small faction of our countrymen, composed (as 
 all factions are) of some knaves and more fools, have thou^rht 
 proper to associate together, for the purpose of circumscribL^ 
 the attributes of loyalty, and the number of the loyaP 
 These are said. ' by their temptations to sedition, to allure 
 the rabble of one party' _ ' whilst they forbid the other, 
 containing four-ffths of the population.' But who are these 
 
 hv "w! "^f '" ^"S'?"** ™ general, many Protestant Dissenters. 
 Z\Z\t7^i:P^' "■' ''"'** ^'*'*'"^^'^' ''»I'-«'«'«1> they are' 
 
 c 2 
 
t u 
 
 1. 
 
 2g 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 *2d 
 
 i 
 
 • k 
 
 knaves ^nd fools, that compose this faction in Ire^land? Let 
 Mr. Scully answer in the next page: 'I learn, from the 
 authority of the most respectable men of all persuasions, that 
 they profess the Established reiig^ion, as being the most 
 wealthy, and the strongest, without possessing:: mu( h of its 
 mild and tolerant spirit, &c. I understand that they are 
 generally men of obscure origin, doubtful or desperate means, 
 narrow intellects, no learning, icithout amenittf in their man- 
 ners, or siceetness in their temper. Not possessing importance 
 of themselves, they have recruited their lodges, by sounding 
 the tocsin of loyalty, by raising a clamour of ** Church in 
 danger"—" Ascendency"—" King William"—" The Glorious 
 Memory," and so forth. Not possessing much property 
 themselves, they claim, in rebellion and warfare, to be the 
 sole escorts of our property, and the sole sentinels of our laws ; 
 as if we knew not the value of our own property, of good 
 order, and of wholesome laws.' 
 
 " In several pages following, the same liberal language is 
 continued, and in the 83d page, we are even told, that the 
 peasantry are driven by them to leave their homes, to escape 
 apprehended assassination ; to fly to the rebel ranks for 
 shelter ! ! 
 
 " Any observation I may offer on these extracts will be 
 short, as every person must see, that this Roman Catholic 
 Counsellor pleads very hard against the Protestants of Ireland, 
 notwithstanding he, with the Petitioners, do * most solemnly 
 assure Parliament, that their earnest solicitude for Emancipa- 
 tion, at this peculiar crisis, arises principally from their 
 anxious desire to extinguish all motives to disunion, and all 
 means of exciting discontent.* — I scarcely suppose the 
 Petitioners themselves believe, that the Protestants in Ireland 
 can give them credit for the sincerity of their profemons, till 
 their actions correspond therewith. Mr. Scully certainly 
 may well call the members of the Established Church fools 
 should they deliver up their arms to Catholic Pikemen, be- 
 cause they forsooth most humbly applied for them. The 
 Irish Protestant Swadlers, also, must be wrapped up iiv 
 
 Catholic swadling-bands, and completely rocked to sleep, if, 
 (when by this Roman Catholic Counsellor, and his associates,' 
 they are compared to invaders, wretches, and 7nurderers, wh J 
 ought to be driven into the ocean like rats,) they ever should 
 believe the conciliating language of this Petition, or stand by 
 consenting unto the death of that religion, which is the glory 
 of our country, and from which we have derived all those 
 advantages which have raised Great Britain so high among the 
 nations. Contrast Our Country with any of those over which 
 Rome sways her iron sceptre— ^Ae/r rack and wheel with our 
 trial by jury— that spirit of free enquiry, which pervades all 
 ranks, with the narrow fettered minds of the subjects of the 
 See of Rome. Compare our doctrine, which presses the search- 
 ing of the Scriptures upon Protestants as their duty, with theirs, 
 winch forbids it— and then judge of the propriety of Catholic* 
 Emancipation ; of allowing men, with such principles, to 
 become * Masters of our affairs; as Bishop Taylor says, in 
 his Dissuasive from Popery. Were the Counsellor as ready 
 to put into the hands of his Catholic brethren, that system of 
 Christianity (not Popery J, the BMe, which teaches 'peace 
 upon earti), and good-will towards men,' as he is to furnish 
 them with hard speeches and vile epithets against the Protes- 
 tants, we might hope to see a spirit of brotherly love and 
 good order prevail in that unhappy country. 
 
 " But the Counsellor, when pleading the cause of his 
 Loyal Catholic brethren (the rebels), omits to compliment 
 them in a similar strain. He complains of the cowardice and 
 treachery of the French towards 1500 of them, in the year 
 1798; and instead of considering them as rebels, they are 
 
 called BRAVE MEN— HIS HAPLESS COUNTRYMEN, and their 
 
 death a butchery and massacre. * Those dishonoured 
 lellows (the French) got quarters, (says he), and immediately 
 saw with unconcern almost every man of those poor Irish 
 BUTCHERED bcforc their eyes. I have since been to the ^ 
 Jield of massacre, and was shewn the large pits, into which 
 Ijeaps of Irish carcases were thrown, without the ordinary 
 ntes of Christian interment; Perhaps the Counsellor may be 
 

 30 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 31 
 
 able to tell us, what Christian interment the hundred Pro- 
 testants had, who were burnt in Scolloboge Bariiy as no doubt 
 he has seen the place so well known to these dearly beloved 
 brethren^ who were so much entitled to Christian interment ? 
 No doubt he intends getting a bill filed against his Majesty's 
 army, for butchering these loyal rebels, when a Catholic Grand 
 Jury is empannelled. 
 
 " Happy indeed would it be for the Protestants of Ireland, 
 if the prejudices of their Roman Catholic neighbours were 
 removed ! If this was really the case, and their principles 
 such as asserted to be in this Petition, we should not then hear 
 of the midnight incendiary, consuming the well-earned sub- 
 fetance of his neighbours, and either murdering Protestant 
 families, or compelling them to leave their habitations." 
 
 r 
 
 We may now well exclaim in the language of David, 
 " Lord, what is man V* For, notwithstanding the hitter and 
 cruel spirit manifested by the generality of the Irish Papists, 
 yet we find their brethren pleading for unbounded extension 
 of their civil privileges, upon this ground, that they have 
 been peaceable and loyal subjects. But it is truly sur- 
 prising, that they who are most clamorous for complete 
 toleration and liberty would not allow it to us (as we have 
 eveiy reason to believe) if the reins of government should 
 ever be put into their hands. The experience of past ages 
 fully demonstrates, that neither Papists nor Dissenters, when 
 they gained the ascendency, and were invested with juridical 
 power, have indulged the Members of the Established 
 Church with even the same toleration which is now extended 
 to them : and yet, dissatisfied and impctient, yea, indignant 
 at the very term of toleration, they would have all restraints 
 entirely removed. 
 
 The following extract from an Act passed in the middle of 
 the sixteenth century, speaks too plainly to require any 
 comment. " It is hereby further ordained by the said Lords 
 and Commons, that if any person or persons whatsoever, 
 shall at any time or times hereafter use, or cause the afore- 
 
 said book of Common Prayer, to be used in any church, 
 chapel, or publique place of worship, or in any private place or 
 family, within the kingdom of England, or dominion of Wales, 
 or port and town of Berwick, that then every such person so 
 oftendmg therein, shall for the frst of ence forfeit fve pounds 
 of lawful English Money, for the second offence the sura of 
 ten pounds, and for the third offence shall sutler one whole 
 year's imprisonment, without bail or raainprize." [Acts A. D. 
 1645, cap. 3, sect 4. See Scobell's edit. p. 7y.] 
 
 Now, if the Independents, who were professed Protestants, 
 could manifest such intolerance, what are we to expect from 
 Papists, in case of any revolution in their favour ? The coi- 
 rection of the one would appear as tender mercy, when com- 
 pared with the heavy strokes of that rod of iron, with which 
 he latter would rule over us.* If they suffered any of us to 
 live, we should soon see an Inquisition in this land of liberty • 
 and If we presumed to complain of the torments inflicted ip it' 
 we should be told, in the words of its bigoted and merciless 
 advocates of old, "To deny that the Inquisition is a righteous 
 tribunal, ,s heretical, because to doubt of the justice of its 
 jurisdiction, is to doubt of that of the Pope. The truth is 
 that the Inquisitors are the sentinels of Heaven, the shepherds 
 of the pontifical flock, the husbandmen of the fields of Christ 
 What wonder then, that the sentinels should be abhorred by 
 the enemy whom they espy, the shepherd by the wolves 
 whom he wounds, the husbandman by tlie tares which he 
 plucks up ! These perverse dogs do but bite the stone which 
 18 the corner-stone of the faith, and bark at the rod of justice 
 with which theyare chastised." 
 
 It is worthy of remark, that when those who are hostile 
 to our admirable Constitution, perceive, or think they 
 perceive, any infringement made upon their rights, under 
 the Act of Toleration, they instantly spread an alarm throu<.h. 
 out the country, . and unanimously stand up in defence 
 of them. Scrupulously tenacious of their privileges, they 
 
 • Appendix, IIv 
 
 > 
 
32 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 resist the least appearance of an attempt against them ; but, on 
 the other hand, when the guardians of Government see the 
 many bold attacks which are made upon it, and endeavour to 
 ward them off, they are reputed, and called by its enemies, il- 
 liberal, and oppressive. For using the same caution which the 
 tolerated sectaries think right to use, the members of the 
 Establishment are severely condemned. " But wisdom is jus- 
 tified of her children." 
 
 It was the observation of Solomon, the wisest of kings, *' A 
 prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; but the 
 simple pass on, and are punished." Every sensible man, who 
 is apprehensive of danger, will endeavour to secure himself 
 against it; but the foolish , unapprized of the perils which 
 await them, never look forward, nor consider consequences; 
 and so go on thoughtlessly, till overtaken by the impending 
 evil. To those who are advocates for the Catholics, I appeal, 
 whether they do not enjoy more security for their liberty and 
 property than the subjects of any other, the most favoured, 
 nation on earth. Neither the French nor the German^?, in their 
 own country, enjoy any thing comparable to it. But not satis- 
 fied with this, they claim a full equality in all civil and mili- 
 tary offices; and that, for the benefit of a set of people who are 
 hostile to Church and State. But who are they that claim this 
 religious liberty? — the most intolerant set oh the face of the 
 earth; men more intokrant than the Mahometans. They 
 allow to others no liberty of conscience whatever; and, even 
 in the last acts of the Cortes of Spain, it was declared, that the 
 Roman Catholic religion should be the sole religion of the 
 country, and no other tolerated. This was lately asserted 
 in the House of Commons. 
 
 Speaking of the Papists, Bishop Newton observes, " they 
 are for a free toleration, and full liberty of conscience. But 
 if they are such friends to it, why will they not allow it to 
 others, as well as require it for themselves ? Where is the 
 reason, or justice, or equity, that they should expect the Es- 
 tablished Churclj, to grant the same indulgence to them, which 
 they deny to the Established Church ?** 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 33 
 
 Beware, then, O Protestants, how you give the least en- 
 couragement to Popery/ Wherever its adherents have had 
 the supreme authority, they have always evinced, not only the 
 most overbearing, but the most sanguinary spirit. Learn wis- 
 dom, therefore, from the experience of past ages. 
 
 As to religious opinions, and speculations of faith, which 
 have no influence on the political conduct of men, united with 
 their fellow-creatures in social life, it would be always im- 
 proper to interfere with them: but where certain tenets are 
 evidently inimical to Government, they become proper sub- 
 jects for public interference and control. 
 
 Too much has been already granted to the Roman Catholics; 
 therefore, take care how you allow them farther indulgence. 
 Let them have the same liberty, civil and religious, which they 
 had before the late acts passed in their favour; but let not a 
 sword be put into their hands, which they may plunge into 
 your own bowels. Upon no account (while they are obedient 
 to the laws) let a hair of their head be hurt; but give them 
 not the power of hurting you. 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 The inhuman scenes which Roman Catholics have acted should 
 operate as a powerful learning to all Protestants, whether in 
 the Established Church or out of it. The most spirited exer- 
 tions necessary, at this critical moment, to prevent a repetition 
 of the same bloody tragedy. 
 
 How different is the benign spirit of the P rotcstant mXigiow 
 from that of Popery ! The one, in the wide-extended arms of 
 truly Catholic love, embraces all mankind, even Jews,Turks, and 
 infidels; and, accordingly, is now disseminating those " Scrip- 
 tures which are able to make men wise unto salvation," through 
 all the habitable parts of the globe : the other prevents even 
 
34 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 
 those of their own communion from readin<]j the word of the 
 Lord; and, like the bigoted liery Saul of Tarsus, ** breathes 
 out" notliing but " threatening and slaughter against the disci- 
 ples of Jesus," who has expressly told us, that ** he came into 
 the world, not to destroy men s lives, but to save them." The 
 ofie teaches us " to love our enemies, to bless them that curse 
 us, and to pray for them that despitefully use and persecute 
 us:" the other not only allows^ but also commands its profes- 
 sors, to curse and excommunicate, with the most horrid forms 
 and rites, all those whom, through infatuation and ignorance, 
 they call heretics. The one only uses strong arguments from 
 " the lively oracles" of God, to propagate Christian principles; 
 and, by the mild arts of persuasion, endeavours ** to convince 
 gainsayers;" while the other, by unparalleled tortures by (ire 
 sword, " compels men to come" within its bloody pale. 
 
 Luther, in the account which he gives of the progress he 
 made in the work of reformation, says, " When I began the 
 affair of indulgences, at the veiy first, I was a monk and a 
 most mad Papist. So intoxicated was I, and drenched in 
 Papal dogmas, that I would have been ready at all times to 
 murder, or assist others in murdering any person who should 
 utter a syllable against the duty of obedience to the Pope. I 
 was a complete Saul; and there are many such still.'* 
 
 Bishop Newton, also, after speaking of the artful methods 
 taken by the Pope and his cardinals to establish their religion, 
 adds, " Where policy and the arts of intrigue could not pre- 
 vail, there /orce was called in; there the princes of their com- 
 munion were stirred up to arms ; there wholesome severities 
 were applied, rods^ and oibhets, rackinf^^'-wheelsy and rasing fires. 
 It is the doctrine of their Church, that, to root out and extir- 
 pate heretics (so they call all who differ from them), is to do 
 God good service ; and their practice has been altogether agree- 
 able to their principles. For, any one ever so little versed in 
 history, knows full well, that most of the horrid plots and con- 
 spiracies, most of the rebellions and treasons, most of the civil 
 wars and massacres, which for a thousand years past, have 
 ?hook the quiet of the West, have been contrived, fomentedj 
 
 35 
 
 executed, by the priests and bigots of the Church of Rome; 
 and, in what country of Europe have they not laid the scene of 
 these bloody tragedies— in what age have they not acted and 
 applauded them ? " 
 
 Instead of praying with David, « Deliver me from blood- 
 guiltiness, O God," to commit this worst of crimes seems to be 
 a rooted principle in them. Hence, the Pu)mish clergy oblige 
 themselves by oath, on their admission to their sacred func- 
 tions, " to persecute and impugn, to the utmost of their power, 
 all heretics, schismatics, and rebels to their lord, the Pope."* ' 
 But, surely, I may say to them, as our merciful Lord said 
 to his Disciples, on a similar occasion, "Ye know not what 
 manner of spirit ye are of; for the Son of man is not come to 
 destroy men's lives, but to save them:* Luke ix. 56. 
 
 Indeed, persecution, on the account of religion, is not only 
 wicked, but highly absurd ; because it defeats its own end: 
 for, instead of reconciling the mind to any set of rehgious prin- 
 ciples, it must excite the utmost horror and disgust It may 
 make hypocrites— it cannot make true converts— which must 
 be the effect of choice alone. 
 
 The horrible effects of persecution by the Papists in foreign 
 countries, but more especially in our own, ought to touch the 
 tenderest feelings of every true Protestant. No language is 
 sufficient to describe the injustice and barbarity of such a 
 hellish spirit To illustrate the truth of these observations 
 let us, for a moment turn our eyes to foreign countries; and 
 what scenes of cruelty have been acted under the auspices of 
 Popery !t How many have been tortured on the rack, or 
 
 ♦ " Hiereticos, schismaticos, aut rebellos, eidem domino nos- 
 tro, vol successoribus praedictis, pro posse persequar et im- 
 
 rJ'/'l?'^''i ''''^\'''' ^^}^^' ^^"^' computes that, in the Low 
 Countnes alone, from the time that the Edict ofCharies V. was 
 promulgated a-ainst the Reformers, there had been 60 000 
 
 of ill!" on "^h' ^'^''«^'^' ^r^^ ^^^^^^' ^^ ^"^"^> -" ^^-oZ 
 ot lehoion, Hume*s Hist, vol. iv. p. 419. 
 
 
 i il 
 
 •f 
 
 A' *■'! 
 
36 
 
 STRONG nEAsONS AGAINST 
 
 , .1 J 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 cruelly murdered in tlie cells of the Inquisition !* How many 
 have been dragged forth to disgrace, what is called, in those 
 unhappy countries, an auto dafiy an act of faith, but is rather 
 an act of triumph over faith, humanity, and common sense. 
 Is it not enough to condemn the innocent to flames, kindled 
 by superstition; without leading them forth in mock proces- 
 sions, and clothing them with san benitos, or coats of devils, to 
 expose them to the insults of a barbarous multitude ? — But 
 why do we speak of cruelty to individuals only ? Let us call 
 to remembrance the massacre at Paris, on the 24th of August, 
 1572. There Popeiy appeared in its true colours, " drunken 
 with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs 
 of Jesus.** Whilst Popery has existence upon earth, let it be 
 remembered, though to the disgrace of humanity ; let it be 
 remembered with horror, that on St. Bartholomew Vday,t not 
 
 * See Appendix. Also, Stockdale's History of the Inqui- 
 sitions. 
 
 t On this occasion, twenty-five thousand, according to Mezc- 
 ray ; thirty, according to Thuanus, were barbarously murdered : 
 among whom were five or six hundred noblemen, or gentle- 
 men of the highest distinction. Such a complication of hellish 
 doings (who could have thought it?) found panegyrists among 
 the abettors of Popery : Peter Charpentier wrote an apology 
 for it ; John Des Caurres praised it in an ode : the most lux- 
 uriant encomiums were bestowed upon it, in a speech pro- 
 nounced before Philip II. The Holy Father himself, Gregory 
 XIII, (of infamous memory) was no sooner informed by Cardi- 
 nal de Lorraine of this massacre, than he went in proces- 
 sion to St. Lewis's church, where (Quake thou, O Earth; 
 tremble, ye heavens; and ye Stars, withdraw your shining! J 
 he returned the merciful IVIaker and Redeemer of mankind, 
 public and solemn thanks for that bloody work. Nay, that 
 horrible transaction was represented at Rome, in a magnifi- 
 cent picture, with this inscription. The triumph of the Church: 
 which indeed was very proper, if it meant. The triumph of the 
 Church of Rome over Christianity and humanity itself. If 
 these people did not ^lory in their shame, sure no others ever 
 did. Thuanus shewed himself a much better man, when hq 
 applied to this tragedy the following lines of Statius: 
 Excidat ilia dies aevo, nee postera credant 
 Saecula! certd nos tareamus, & obruta multi 
 Nocte tegi propriae patiamur crimina gentis. 
 
 37 
 
 only thousands of Protestants, but tens of thousands, were 
 murdered in Fran-e in cold bloody suddenly massacred in 
 their be<l8 and houses, by the cruelty and treachery of their 
 Popish fellow-subjects, at the veiy time they were apparently 
 caressed and courted. 
 
 But to come nearer lionie. In England, where no Inqui- 
 sition was suffered, Popeiy hath recorded her name in charac- 
 ters of blood. During the reign of queen Maiy, how many of 
 the most learned and pious men were brought to witness a 
 good confession at the stake ! The cruelty of Popish perse- 
 cutors made no distinction of age or sex, learned or un- 
 learned, noble or ignoble: all fell alike the victims of their un- 
 discerning bigotry. Nay, horrible to mention ! pregnant wo- 
 men were burnt alive. And in the island of Guernsey, a scene 
 of almost incredible barbarity was acted .- " A mother and her 
 two daughters being committed to the flames, one of them 
 being married, and in the last month of her pregnancy, was, 
 by the violence of the pain, taken in labour, and brought'forth' 
 an infant; which a humane bye-stander rescued from the fire: 
 but, after some consultation, the magistrate, who superintend- 
 ed the execution, ordered the innocent to be thrown back 
 into the flames; where it perished with the mother*;" con- 
 curring in opinion with Bellarmine, a cardinal of the first note, 
 who says, " that if it were possible to root out heretics, with- 
 out doubt they are to be destroyed root and branch f." 
 
 Smithfield. Oxford, Cambridge, most of the public mar- 
 ket-crosses, and many other places throughout the kingdom 
 
 " May that day be never numbered anions those that arc oatt' 
 May t^e cruelties, that were then committed, meetldth no cr7lit 
 tn Jollowm^ aires/ At least, let us be sure, never to mention 
 
 conceatea under the veil of the darkest nicht ' " 
 See Bav/e's Dictionary, Art. Charpentier N, C. and 4rt. 
 
 tholomrw ^""''^^^ « History of the Massacre of St. Bar- 
 
 • Smollet's History- of England, vol. vi. f Bellarm. dc laic. 
 
38 
 
 STRONG SEASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 39 
 
 J\ 
 
 have a voice crying aloud to British Protestants, Beware or 
 Popery ; and bear an unanimous and irrefragable testimony, 
 that Popery and unrestricted Toleration never can agree *. 
 O Britons! let not the blood of the martyrs be forgotten, or 
 their sutVerings effaced from our memories, or from those of 
 our children, to the latest posterity ! 
 
 From England, let us pass to her sister kingdom, Ireland ; 
 and behold more recent displays of Popish cruelty ! Is the 
 memorable and lamentable aera of 1641 so soon forgotten, 
 when the Papists endeavoured to extirpate the Protestants 
 with lire, sword, and famine } 
 
 What were the maxims, at that time, loudly proclaimed 
 by the Priests, when their intrigues for carrying on their in- 
 tended massacre were ripe for execution? A true patriot 
 would wish that they were posted up in every one of our 
 streets, that people of all ranks and of all ages might read 
 them. They were these t — " That Protestants werb 
 
 HERETICS NOT TO BE SUFFERED TO LIVE ANY LONGER 
 
 AMONG Roman Catholics. That it mas no more sik 
 TO KILL AN Englishman (viz. who was a Protestant) than 
 to KILL A dog; and, that it was a most mortal and 
 
 unpardonable SIN TO RELIEVE OR PROTECT ANY OF 
 
 THEM." They acted accordingly, for, though the plot was 
 discovered, time enough to prevent the bloody projected 
 scene from taking place in Dublin, yet in the province of Ul- 
 ster, and other parts of the kingdom, near one hundred thou- 
 sand Protestants were butchered, with such circumstances of 
 premeditated cruelty, as none but bigoted Papists could have 
 conceived. Such spectacles of misery and distress must have 
 softened any other hearts, however savage and uncultivated. 
 Yet the Papists not only insulted them in their suti'erings, 
 
 * Fox's Marty rology, and Burnet's History of the Reform* 
 ation, vol. ii. p. 337. 
 
 t Sir John Temple's History of the Irish Rebellion, p. 70. 
 Also, the Sermon of Henry, Bishop of Dromore, preached the 
 23rd of Oct. 1733, on the deliveraxice of IreUucifiaBl Popery. 
 
 but triumphed in the hope, that the victims of their fury- 
 would be damned to all eternity ♦. The mind recoils from 
 such scenes of barbarity with horror ; and, upon a review of 
 tbese melancholy facts, by what arguments from reason, jus- 
 tice, humanity or piety, can the unqualified toleration of such 
 a religious (or, more properly speaking, irreligious) profes- 
 Mon, be defended in any free and Protestant state? 
 
 The following singular circumstance was related to me by 
 an Irish lady, on whose word I can fully rely. She and her 
 husband lived in a part of Ireland, where there was not a 
 genteel Protestant family within three miles of them ; so 
 that, for want of better company, they frequently asked the 
 Popish priest, with whose drollery they were sometimes 
 much entertained, to dinner. In the course of some years, it 
 was currently reported, and believed, that the Pretender was 
 coining with a powerful force to invade the kingdom, which 
 caused great consternation and terror among the Protestants, 
 especially in those parts, which were totally defenceless, and 
 inliabited mostly by Papists. Accordingly, the lady said to 
 this priest, one day, " Now, Father , suppose the Pre- 
 tender had landed, and was advancing at the head of a vic- 
 torious army ; though I know the Roman Catholics think it no 
 sin to put heretics to death, when they have it in their power, 
 yet I beg you will tell me, as an honest man, whether you 
 would not spare me and Mr. G — in the general mas- 
 sacre." « In troth, madam," said he. « it is not a fair 
 question ;" and after long evading to answer it, she at last 
 pressed bun hard, and assured him, she would not be offended, 
 let him say what he would. Upon this, he ansv/ered, " Well] 
 
 Mrs. G , I must confess, that ever since you came to 
 
 this parish, both you and Mr. G have treated me with 
 
 great hospitality : many a good piece of beef I have eaten 
 with you, and many a hearty good bowl of punch I have 
 
 * History of England, and Sir John Parson's Historv of 
 this horrible massacre. 
 
il' t 
 
 
 40 
 
 STROKG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 41 
 
 drank with you ; therefore, as friends, I should be inclined to 
 spare you, but, as heretics^ I mu^t destroy you." 
 
 Indeed, as to the persecuting spirit of Popery, it is to this 
 day, and ever will be, the same. It cannot be otherwise, 
 whilst its abettors maintain its two fundamental tenets, Papal 
 supremacy, and infallibility : the apparent ditt'erence, between 
 the present and past times, must be ascribed to that want of 
 power which they formerly had, and which they are now so 
 strenuously endeavouring to regain. 
 
 By rejecting their idolatrous superstition, and vain tradi- 
 tions, we became heretics and schismatics, in the judgment of 
 the See of Rome : therefore, the Pope yearly excommunicates 
 us as such, denounces the most dreadful curses against us, 
 and declares our destruction to be a meritorious work I That 
 all this is not mere form and ceremon}', but a design zea- 
 lously pursued, wherever it is practicable, is evident from 
 the Inquisitions which are still kept up, and from the conduct 
 of Papists, in all kingdoms, where their religion is unrestrained 
 by law *. 
 
 Popery has long been chained in Britain : the consequences 
 of loosing the fetters will be dreadful to posterity, as its prin- 
 ciples remain the same. Popes, and general councils, are 
 still infallible ; and, as it is impossible for infallibility to err. 
 Popery must necessarily be, in future, what it has been in the 
 days which are past. Can we rationally suppose, that time 
 has made the least alteration in them, or that heresy has 
 grown less odious to them ? By no means. It is only want of 
 power, which prevents them from repeating the cruel and 
 monstrous barbarities of their forefathers. 
 
 Far be it from us to make this merciless treatment of our 
 brethren, the rule of our behaviour towards thei/s. *' We 
 have not so learned Christ," to think racks and fires a fit ap- 
 plication to the consciences of Christians, or to reckon the 
 destruction of their bodies a proper means for the salvation of 
 their souls, 
 
 * Appendix. 
 
 But, surely, these cruelties towards Protestants in other 
 nations, should make the Papists in our own more modest in 
 their demands, and prevent them from thinking, that they 
 were entitled to netv and unusual liberties. And though the 
 good-nature and religion of Englishmen forbid them to copy 
 those savage examples, yet we may well be allowed so far to 
 observe and remember them, as to be jealous of the growth of 
 that religion among ourselves, which, in other countries, 
 could animate the professors of it to burn and torture those of 
 a different persuasion. 
 
 As Protestants, we are certainly concerned to secure our- 
 selves and our posterity from Popish persecution. When we 
 call to mmd the Protestant blood which has been shed by 
 Papists, not only in foreign countries, but at home, we cannot 
 but be excited to use every legal expedient, to prevent the 
 return of such a national calamity. For, should the Papists, 
 m any future period, be possessed of power, we have every 
 reason to apprehend that the same principles would be pro- 
 ductive of the same eflects. These principles they have 
 never publicly disavowed ; and, as Papists, they cannot, with 
 consistency, disown : therefore, as they strike at our liberties 
 and lives, to tolerate persons professing them (to the extent 
 which they require) is to lay the axe to the root of our dearest 
 privileges and most sacred rights. 
 
 I have been used to think, that it is unwise to make asser- 
 tions so notoriously contrary to truth, that they can impose 
 upon no man ; and, surely, if ever any fact was established 
 beyond the power of controversy, one would have thought 
 that It must have been this of the persecuting spirit formally 
 declared, and systematically acted upon, by the Romish 
 Church. But, it seems, the Petitioners have now discovered 
 that it is all a calumny; that, in truth, the Romish Church 
 abominates all such doctrines: Thus, those very Parhaments 
 of Ireland, which relaxed the laws in behalf of the Roman 
 Catholics, which shewed them such favours, which are 
 appealed to by themselves as vouchers for their loyalty 
 and good conduct, are, by the most clear implication, ar- 
 
.' i 
 
 Ml 
 
 4*2 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 raigned, uls having adopted and countenanced a falsehood, and 
 as having, under pretence of reports so unfounded, exacted 
 from them an oath not only unnecessary and supertluous, but 
 " painful to their feelings,'' and such as ought not therefore to 
 have been imposed. 
 
 From authentic histories it clearly appears that Popes and 
 Popish councils have authorized the cruelties inflicted by the 
 Roman Cathalics, in various ages, upon those whom they 
 deemed to be heretics.— If it be contended that such is not 
 the doctrine of the Romish Church at this moment, let me 
 ask by what Pope, or by what Council it is abrogated, or how 
 have these decrees lost their force ? How have such practices 
 been disclaimed or discountenanced? By what authority 
 equal to that which passed, or which sanctioned them, has it 
 been declared that these decrees and these practices are en- 
 tirely laid aside .^ 
 
 Indeed, the more Popery is known, and the more seriously 
 its principles and consequences are attended to, the more 
 readily, it is hoped, every Protestant among us will join his 
 head and heart, or (if need be) sacrifice his life and fortune, 
 to keep it at the greatest distance from these kingdoms— to 
 maintain the crown on the head of his present Majesty (the 
 sincere Defender of ourholy faith), and to transmit it to his 
 latest posterity. Here lies our safety, our liberty, our wel- 
 fare, our all. Here, God and men, nature and religion, our 
 present and eternal happiness, public and private interest, our 
 nearest and dearest relations, wives, children, friends, call 
 aloud for our most vigorous joint-endeavours. Here, want of 
 foresight, or of prudence, is stupidity — remissness in pro- 
 viding against danger, is treason — too great an indulgence for 
 declared enemies, is cruelty to ourselves. Here, " whosoever 
 is not for us, is against us" — whosoever stands neuter, i$' 
 little better than a rebel. 
 
 4;) 
 
 SECTION V. 
 
 Popery hostile to Cicil and Religious Liberty^zuhile it acknow- 
 ledges the sovereign jurisdiction of the Pope, and the power 
 of Popish Priests to forgive the greatest enormities, it leads 
 its Votaries, not only to break their promises and oaths, but 
 to foment rebellion and 7nurder. Its doctrines naturally 
 tend to the subversion of every Protestant Government. 
 
 Having pointed out, in the preceding section, some of 
 the horrible cruelties exercised by Papists, on those who have 
 separated from them for conscience sake, I now proceed to 
 »hew, that It is incompatible with the preservation of our 
 cml Coustitutioii, to countenance Popery; because it not 
 only enslaves the mind, but would bmd nobles and people 
 with the iron chains of despotism. It is a system convenient 
 lor tyrants. In this countr>% particularly, we have ever found 
 It looking with a malignant aspect on freedom, and active in 
 the retmue of arbitrary powtr. 
 
 Popery abhors civil liberty, because civil liberty is friendly 
 to liberty of conscience : and it is a maxim of all Papists, from 
 which they never can, consistently, depart, that ^* disobedience 
 to the laws of the Pope and of the Church, not only excludes 
 men from salvation, but is likewise a forfeiture of all civil 
 rights and liberties whatsoever* " 
 
 r,V,.UVn^^\f"J^"'^'''"^ ^'^*^''« Appendix to the Ro- 
 n sh Ecc esmstical History, wherein are the following q„o. 
 
 ^l'*""? Tk ?'^'"^"" "'"y '"^^^f^'Iy "^e spoiled of their K 
 though It be better to take then, by authority "— " None Te 
 bound to restore wliat they have been intrusted with by here- 
 
 Crl'J'' ?^ ^%v'^ ^"^ '''"'''■^*^' ^^'^^ ^'th theni."-By Pope 
 Slf^'V'n ^^'^' constitutions, " A man. by heresy, is cfe- 
 piijed of all jurisdiction, whether natural, civil, or politic."- 
 Heretics may not be termed either children or kindred • but 
 
 As a convincing proof of this, we give the foUowing an^c- 
 
 1) 2 
 
 ■■I 
 
 >'\ 
 
ft'*- 
 
 i 
 
 Mr 
 
 44 
 
 STROI^G REASONS AGAINST 
 
 '^i 
 
 I'l 
 
 •1^ 
 
 Inseparable, then, are Popery and slavery. An Inquisition 
 in the Church, is a sure mark of slavery in the State, The liber- 
 ties of England o-rcir ^/p with the Reformation, and will certainly 
 die with it. When Papists got possession of the British throne, 
 in the person of James II, our laws were presently suspended, 
 our charters taken from us, and our whole Constitution sub- 
 verted—the knife was at our throats ; and the only choice 
 which seemed left, was, to turn or burn. The populace wert 
 alarmed, and Protestants shook their chains and groaned for a 
 deliverer, which God, of his inhnite -mercy, sent us, in the 
 person of the great King William III, who rescued this nation 
 from Popery, and all Europe from the fetters which a power- 
 ful and ruthless tyrant had prepared. 
 
 Hence it follows, that to allow Poper>' unrestrained power, 
 is totally inconsistent with the safety of a free people, and a 
 Protestant Government. For it is a certain fact, that the whole 
 tendency of the Romish religion, is, to deprave the mind, and 
 
 dote: " John Diazius, a Spaniard, became a Protestant from 
 reading- the books of Luther. His brother Alphonsus, one oi 
 the Pope's lawyers, hearing that his brother was turned Pro- 
 testant, came with all speed into Germany, bringing a noto- 
 rious cut-throat with him, resolving either to brmg hun back 
 to Popery, or to destroy him. 
 
 " When Alphonsus c'dnu) io Ratisbon, his brother Jo/z« wa* 
 crone to Neivber<r, about the printing of Bucer's books, to 
 which place Alphonsus followed him, and there they mam- 
 tained many disputations upon religious matters; but Alphon- 
 sus finding his brother so stedfast in the belief of the truths ol 
 the gospel, that neither the Pope's agent, by his promises or 
 threats, could terrify him, nor he, by his persuasions and pre- 
 tensions of brotherly love, could prevail upon him to return 
 to Popery ; he feigned to take a most friendly and atl'ectionate 
 leave of him, and departed ; but soon he returned with his 
 ruffianly murderer, and by the way they bought an hatchet 
 of a carpenter. Uphonsus sent the ruffian in first, disguised, 
 with letters to his brother, himself following behind; and 
 while John Diazius was reading the letters, this bloody mur- 
 derer cleft his head with the hatchet, and taking horse, they 
 
 both rode away." , , ,^ t> t- 
 
 Bio^^raph, Evangel., Life oi Diazius, published by Rev. Lrab^- 
 
 mus Middleton. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 45 
 
 prepare it for the most abject captivity. The Popes have al- 
 ways been the most absolute of despots. The empire which 
 they have established is over the mind-it commenced in fraud 
 und maintained itself by a system of ignorance, in requiring 
 implicit obedience, and forbidding every sort of inquiry into 
 the grounds upon which that obedience was exacted. How 
 monstrous and groundless soever this empire may appear it 
 has had the most public and solemn sanctions of their Church 
 In the L^^era;. Council it was decreed, « That the Roman 
 High-Pnest holds a primacy over the universal Church, as sue 
 cesBorof St Pe^.r, prince of the Apostles ; that he is the true 
 heutenant ofChrist,andheadof the Church; the father and doc 
 tor of all Christians, to whom all power is committed to feed, 
 direct, and govern theCatholic Church under Christ." Hence he 
 claims the sole right of defining points of doctrine, and de- 
 cidmg controversies of faith, without liberty of appeal, even 
 to a geneml council ; and of binding and loosing, opening and 
 shutting the gates of heaven at his pleasure. To secure these 
 powers, with many others of the like extravagant nature, he 
 exacts the most solemn oaths from his clergy, and particularly 
 rom the bishops, who swear, " To be faithful and obedient 
 to St. Peter, and to the holy Roman Church, and our Lord the 
 Pope his successor, to receive and execute all his commands, 
 to discover all plots and conspiracies against him, to preserve 
 and defend the royalties of St. Peter to the utmost of their 
 power and to persecute and oppose all heretics, schismatics, 
 and rebels to our said sovereign lord the Pope, or his suc- 
 cessors. So that all clergymen of the Church of Rome not 
 born within the verge of the Ecclesiastical State, are subjects 
 ot a foreign power, and bound by the most sacred ties to per- 
 secute even unto death (if in their power), all who profess a 
 religion different from their own. Nor is less care taken to 
 secure the allegiance of the lay-converts, who, upon their re- 
 ception into the Romish communion, are obliged to make the 
 ollowmg solemn profession of their faith: " I acknowledge 
 the holy, catholic, apostolic Roman Church, for the mother 
 and mistress of aU churches, and I promise true obedierce ta 
 

 i 
 
 46 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 47 
 
 
 m 
 
 r 
 
 the bishop of Rome, successor to St Peter, prince of the 
 Apostles, and vicar of Jesus Christ; and I do undoubtedly re- 
 ceive and profess all other things defined and declared by the 
 sacred canons, general councils, and particularly the Council of 
 Trent, and I do anathematize all things contrary thereunto, 
 and all heresies which the Church has condemned, rejected, 
 and anathematized." 
 
 This is the current doctrine of the lioman Church, which no 
 man can reject, without being reputed an enemy to the Apos- 
 tolic See ; and it is esteemed of such importance, that Pope 
 Boniface Vlll., in one of his decrees, has declared and pro- 
 nounced it necessary to salvation. 
 
 Now, upon the principles of common sense, with what pro- 
 priety can any Prince give the least encouragement to the 
 members of the Church of Rome, while they own a superior 
 head, who claims a power of absolving subjects from their oaths 
 of allegiance, and of excommunicating, and even murdering 
 their sovereign. And, as this pretended authority is chiefly ex- 
 erted by the Pope against Protestant kings, so are their people 
 prepared to receive, approve, and execute his sentences, by 
 another infamous doctrine, that " no faith is to be kept with 
 heretics."'* To what seditious and cruel attempts, these prin- 
 ciples have blown up some of the infatuated zealots of that 
 Church, none can be ignorant, but those who are unacquainted 
 with the history of Great Britain. 
 
 As to the conduct of the Papists in 1715, the following 
 preamble of an act of Parliament, made immediately after the 
 suppression of that unnatural rebellion, will be the best evi- 
 dence of the opinion our ancestors entertained of the principles 
 of Popery, and of the disloyalty of the Papists on that occasion. 
 — " Whereas the Papists within this kingdom, notwithstand- 
 ing the tender regard that hath been shewn them for many 
 years last past, by omitting to put in execution the many penal 
 laws, which (on occasion of the many just provocations they 
 
 * Appendix, III. 
 
 iiave given, and horrid designs they have framed/or the destruc- 
 tion of this kin^rdum, and the extirpation of the Protestant reli-^ 
 gionj hate been made against them ; and notwithstanding they 
 have enjoyed, and do still enjoy, the protection and benefit of 
 the Government, as well as the rest of his Majesty's subjects, 
 have all, or the greatest part of them, been concerned in stir- 
 ring up and supporting the late unnatural rebellion, for the de- 
 throning and murdering his most sacred Majesty ; for destroying 
 our present happy establishment ; for settling a Popish pretender 
 upon the throne of this kingdom ; far the destruction of the Pro- 
 testant religion, and the cruel murdering and massacreing its 
 professors, by which they have brought a vast expence upon 
 this nation : And whereas it manifestly appears by their be- 
 haviour, that they take upon themselves to he obliged by the prin- 
 ciples they profess, to be enemies to his Majesty, and to the present 
 happy establishment, and watch for all opportunities of foment- 
 ing and stirring up new rebellions and disturbances within the 
 kingdom, and of inviting foreigners to invade it: 
 And for as much as it is highly reasonable, that they should 
 contribute a large share to all such extraordinary expences, as 
 are or shall be brought upon this kingdom by their treachery 
 and instimtion ; and to end, that by paying largely to the late 
 great expences by them brought upon this station, they may be 
 deterred, if possible, from the like offences for the future^" &c. 
 Geo. I. Stat. 2. c. 25. 
 
 It is also expressly mentioned in our statutes, that the design 
 " of the wicked, horrid, and unnatural rebellion in 1745, was 
 to depose and murder his most sacred Majesty, to set up a 
 POPISH PRETENDER, bred up and instructed in Romish 
 superstition and arbitrcrry principles, on the throne, to the utter 
 destruction of the Protestant religion, and the laws and liberties 
 of this free Constitution^ From this it evidently appears, that 
 so late as the year 1745, Popery and arbitrary power were, in 
 the judgment of our forefathers, inseparably connected: Lnd 
 whether any, but Papists, would have attempted to depose and 
 murder king George II, of glorious memory—to set up a Popish 
 pretender, and utterly to destroy the Protestant religion, and 
 
 L'! 
 
w •*" 
 
 
 ;t ' 
 
 
 
 48 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 49 
 
 y: 
 
 \^ 
 
 the laws and liberties of this free Constitution, let the Protest- 
 ants of Great Britain determine. 
 
 But if we even allow, that some of the Roman Catholic 
 may be now well-disposed to submit to " kings, and all that 
 are in authority, and to lead a quiet and peaceable life" under 
 them, yet, should the Pope, who is the supreme head of their 
 Church, order any thing to be done which militates against 
 the interest of the King (who is the visible head of our Esta- 
 blishment), must not their loyalty be exposed to a very strong 
 temptation? Will not their allegiance be actually divided? 
 Only one half of it can be paid to their natural sovereign; 
 and the part which is paid to a foreign potentate, is that 
 part to which most importance is to be attached : for it is 
 that part which is connected with the strongest feelings of 
 the human mind, with those which most decidedly influence 
 their conduct, whenever they are sincere ; and which in fact, 
 experience teaches us, do so operate on Roman Catholics in 
 a surprising degree. 
 
 It must certainly be granted, that there are some creeds 
 which tend more than others to make men good subjects, and 
 to prepare them for obedience to the laws. But of all sys- 
 tems of religion there is none which tends so directly as the 
 Roman Catholic, to subject the civil concerns of a man to the 
 control of his spiritual rulers. The very obligation to con- 
 fess to them, and to receive from them absolution, for what 
 they shall pronounce to be sin* ; the very circumstance of the 
 Pope reserving to himself, or at least to the Church, exclu- 
 sively to determine what actions are good, and what are bad, 
 what is true and what is false doctrine, the denying to the 
 individuals every exercise of their judgment in these cases, 
 must surely have the eft'ect of establishing an empire over the 
 mind, as absolute as extensive. Let a man only consider the 
 consequences that result from the doctrine of purgatory , mtees 
 
 * Let it not be forgotten that the infallibility of councils 
 and the Pope extends not only to matters of Faith but of 
 Morality. So assert Dr. Troy, Messrs. Plowden,and Dr. Milner. 
 
 for the dead, indulgences and absolution in all their forms, 
 with the commutation which is allowed for every sort of 
 penance, whether in money or by other services, not forget- 
 ting the order for persecuting heretics — add to this, the 
 granting or withholding of those sacraments which are con- 
 sidered as indespensable ; and further, that all these are at the 
 disposal and in the power of the Pope, or of those deputed 
 by him : and "then let it be considered whether it be pos- 
 sible that such an authority should not influence the public 
 as well as private life of the individual. 
 
 What, in fact, is the information which history gives us in 
 this respect? What is the language of the Popes them- 
 selves ? 
 
 By Pius V. our Elizabeth was solemnly excommunicated, 
 and by that excommunication her subjects were absolved 
 from their allegiance, simply because she was a heretic : and 
 every man' who acted contrary to that bull, (that is, who 
 after that continued to pay allegiance to her,) was declared to 
 be implicated in that excommunication*. 
 
 In consequence of this, we know what numbere of plots 
 and conspiracies were hatched against her by Roman Catholics, 
 who, in so doing, might well plead, that they only followed 
 the dictates of their conscience. 
 
 But to put this point in a still clearer light, let us turn to 
 the transactions of the next reign. After the memorable 
 gunpowder-plot was discovered and defeated, the Parliament 
 (by Stat. 3. Jac. c. 4.) gave authority to justices and others, to 
 require of Popish Recusants to take an oath o^ obedience, as 
 it was called. It is observable, that this oath (which must 
 have been framed in tenderness to Papists) took no notice 
 at all of the King's supremacy in ecclesiastical aftairs; 
 it only required an acknowledgment that James was " lawful 
 and rightful King of this realm, &c. and that the Pope, 
 neither by himself, or by any authority of the Church or See 
 
 Wilkins's Concilia, vol. iv. 
 
 ■m 
 
iif; 
 
 50 
 
 STJaOXG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 51 
 
 of Rome, &c. had power to depose the Kin;;s &c." Then 
 follows the abjuration of the doctrine, that Princes excom- 
 municated by the Pope, may b« deposed or murdered by 
 their subjects, and a declaration that the Pope has not power 
 to absolve from that oath. Now, in all this what was there 
 contained that was in the least derogatory to the Pope's au- 
 thority in spiritual matters ? What was there different from 
 what the Petitioners profess at this day* ? Yet so f^ir was the 
 Pope from admitting the oath to be proper, or renouncing 
 the pretensions which were condemned in it, that Paul V. 
 immediately published a bull, declaring that no Roman 
 Catholic could take it without breaking the Catholic faith, 
 and endangering his soul. (" Salva Catholica fide ct salute 
 animarum vestrarumf.") 
 
 And because, I suppose, sufficient deference was not paid to 
 this, another bull was issued to the same effect, in the year 
 following.^ Twenty years after this, the same injunction 
 was repeated in another bull issued by Urban Vlll., and one 
 passage of this deserves particular attention, for it says, that 
 this is not a question about an oath of allegiance to the King, 
 but whether the holy sceptre of the universal Church shall be 
 wrested from the viciiis of Almighty God. [** Sed utrum 
 sacrum universal ecclesiae sceptrum eripiatur vicariis Omni- 
 potentis Dei §.**] 
 
 Let us add to this, the bulls issued in the time of Elizabeth, 
 to the Irish rebels, granting them indulgences and absolution 
 as a reward for their rebellion, all which shew the utmost de- 
 liberation and determination to act upon the authority claimed 
 by the Popes. 
 
 Shall I be told that these doctrines and these pretensions 
 
 * Fuller, in his Church History, b. 10. p. 42, tells us, that 
 ** this oath was devised to discriminate the pernicious from 
 the peaceable Papists." ** Nothing could be better understood 
 than the determination of the Pope upon this, for it producecl 
 a long controversy." See Fuller, ib. 
 t Wilkins*s Concil. vol. iv. p. 430. 
 
 are no longer mjiintained ? Then I ask, where, or by whom, 
 are they renounced, or declared to be departed from ? So far 
 from it, has not, almost in these our days, (in 1768,) the same 
 objection been made against any oath of allegiance to a Pro* 
 testant King by a Pope*s legate, and recorded and enforced 
 by a titular bishop of Cloyne, with a recognition of the doc- 
 trines of the Council of Constance in their full extent?* 
 When, in 1791, the leading lay Roman Catholics of England 
 drew up a declaration, renouncing some of the most obnoxious 
 tenets of their Church, was not their conduct disapproved by 
 the vicari apostolic f ? 
 
 Still, therefore, the doctrines continue to be the doctrines of 
 the Romish Church ; nor need we be surprised, if, upon art 
 army of twenty thousand Frenchmen landing in Ireland, wC 
 should find them armed with a bull of a similar nature with 
 that which was issued against Elizabeth, or with that which 
 was granted to Tyrone, or Shawn O'Neil. We must be pre- 
 pared, also, to find among the misguided multitude ot Ireland, 
 numbers who would act upon such a bull with as much fury 
 and zeal as any of the persecutors of the thirteenth ceniuiy. 
 
 In the year 1780, the Rev. J. Wesley addressed **A Letter 
 to the Printer of the Public Advertiser, occasioned by the late 
 Act, passed In favour of Popeiy," wherein he expresses him- 
 self thus. " With persecution I have nothing to do. I 
 persecute no man for his religious principles. Let there be 
 as boundless a freedom in religion, as any man can conceive. 
 But this does not touch the point : I will set religion, true or 
 false, utterly out of the question. Suppose the Bible', if you 
 please, to be a fable, and the Koran to be the word of God 
 I consider not, whether the Romish religion be true or fatee ; 
 I build nothing on one or the other supposition. Therefore' 
 away with all your common-place declamation about intoll 
 
 -*«, 
 
 J Ibm. 431. 
 
 § Ibm. 471. 
 
 * See Sir Richard Musgrave, vol. i. p. 46. 
 
 t See Catholic Emancipation, and the only manner bv 
 
 

 hi 
 
 Strong reasons against 
 
 ranee and persecution for religion ! Suppose evcr>' word of 
 Pope P2Ws creed to be true; suppose the Council of Trent to 
 have been infallible : yet, I insist upon it, tliat no govern- 
 ment, not Roman Catholic, ought to tolerate men of the 
 Roman Catholic persuasion. 
 
 " I prove this by a plain argument ; (let him answer it that 
 can.)— That no Roman Catholic does or can give security for 
 his allegiance or peaceable behaviour, I prove thus. It is a 
 Roman Catholic maxim, established not by private men, but 
 by a public Council, that " No faith is to be kept with 
 heretics."* This has been openly avowed by the Council of 
 Constance; but it never was openly disclaimed. Whether 
 private persons avow or disavow it, it is a fixed maxim of the 
 Church of Rome, But as long as it is so, nothing can be more 
 plain, than that the members of that Church can give no rea- 
 sonable security to any Government, of their allegiance or 
 peaceable behaviour. Therefore, they ought not to be tole- 
 rated by any Government, Protestant, Mahometan, or Pagan. 
 
 " You may say, ' Nay, but they will take an oath of allc- 
 
 * Many of the modern Roman Catholics, (to their shame be 
 it spoken ! ) deny that such a decree was ever mad^. But who- 
 ever consults Father L*Abbe's Concilia Mwarima^ printed at 
 Paris, in 1()72, will find it there recited at large. " The last 
 volume contains a particular account pf the Council of Con- 
 stance ; one of w^hose decrees is, that *' heretics ought to be 
 put to death, non ohstantibus salvis conduct ihus imperatornm 
 regum, &c,, notwithstanding the public faith engaged to 
 them in the most solemn manner." — Yet, Dr. Milner, in 
 his ** Serious Examination," scruples not to tell us (p. \6) 
 that the Court of Constance had nothing to do with the 
 burning of John Huss. " That matter lies between the 
 Emperor Sigismund and the magistrates of the free city of 
 Constance. The former furnished him with a travelling pass, 
 the latter executed him by virtue of the old laws of the em- 
 pire." — So then, the Council of Constance was entirely out of 
 the question ! 1 What abominable equivocation I If a Romish 
 Bishop dares to say this in the face of day, to the British 
 public, what will he not say in his confessional, to the unfor- 
 tunate bigots Avho are to be led by him ! 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 53 
 
 glance*' True, five hundred oaths ; but the maxim, * No faith 
 is to be kept icith heretics^' sweeps them all away as a spider's 
 web. So that still, no governore that are not Roman Catholics, 
 can have any security of their allegiance. 
 
 " Again, those who acknowledge the spiritual power of the 
 Pope can give no security of their allegiance to any Govern- 
 ment ; but all Roman Catholics acknowledge this ; therefore, 
 they can give no security for their allegiance. 
 
 " The power of gv2ii\im» pardons for all sins, past, present, 
 and to come, is, and has been, for many centuries, one branch 
 of his spiritual power. 
 
 "But those who acknowledge him to have this spiritual 
 power, can give no security for their allegiance; since they 
 believe the Pope can pardon rebellions, high-treason, and all 
 other sins whatsoever. 
 
 " The power of dispensing with any promise, oath or vow, 
 is another bmnch of the spiritual power of the Pope. And all 
 who acknowledge his spiritual power, must acknowledge this. 
 But whoever acknowledges the dispensing poiver of the Pope, 
 can give no security of his allegiance to any Government. 
 
 " Oaths and promises are none ; they are light as air ; a dis- 
 pensation makes them all null and void, 
 
 " Nay, not only the Pope, but even a Priest, has poicer to 
 pardon sins/ — This is an essential doctrine of the Church of 
 Rome. But they that acknowledge this, cannot possibly give 
 any security for their allegiance to any Government. Oaths- 
 are no security at all ; for the priest can pardon both perjur\ 
 and high-treason. 
 
 " Setting then religion aside, it is plain, that, upon princi- 
 ples of reason, no Government ought to tolerate men, who 
 cannot give any security to that Government for their alle- 
 giance and peaceable behaviour. But this no Romanist can 
 do, not only while he holds, that * no faith is to be kept with 
 heretics,' but so long as he acknowledges either priestly abso- 
 lution, or the spiritual power of the Pope." 
 Upon this letter, Mr. 0*Leary, a Capuchin friar in Dublin, 
 

 54 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 S»i 
 
 M 
 
 published some remarks, in which (as Mr. Wesley observed) 
 ** he only opposed drollery and low wit to argument, which 
 moved him to tears, rather than to laughter." And then, in 
 his serious reply, he says, " I plead for the safety of my coun- 
 try, yea, for the children that are yet unborn. But still, 1 
 would not have the Roman Catholics persecuted at all. I ab- 
 hor the thought— it is foreign to all I have preached and wrote. 
 I would wish them to be treated with the same lenity that 
 they have been these GO years— to be allowed the same civil 
 and religious liberties, but not to undermine ours. I would 
 only have them hindered from doing hurt to others. I would 
 not put it in their power (and I do not wish that others 
 should) to cut the throats of their quiet neighbours." 
 
 It is, indeed, far from the temper of the English, and the 
 nature of our Constitution, to make men suffer upon bare pre- 
 gumptions : but, at the same time, the regard we owe to our- 
 selves and to our Constitution, calls upon us to be very icatch- 
 fuly when we are sure there is an enemy within our gates. 
 When we fmd such a spirit moving among us, it behoves us to 
 observe narrowly which Kay it moves, and to what degrees ; 
 that it may be kept under such restraints, as tlie safety of 
 Church and State shall require. Their principles in effect 
 declare, and the most of us are abundantly convinced, that 
 whatever strength they have will be employed against us, 
 whenever a favourable opportunity presenU itself ; it therefore 
 nearly concerns us, to know the ex^c«« of that strength, and 
 to be jealous of the increase of it. It is the voice of the nation, 
 that we have no present nor future security, under God, but 
 in the prosperity of his Majesty's Government, and the succefi- 
 «ion in the Protestant line. How then can we answer it to 
 ourselves, our posterity, or our religion, if we make it not 
 our utmost care, that they who, we are confident, have it in 
 their will, have it not also in their power , to undermine oi 
 overturn these foundations of our safety \ As they are totally 
 opposite to us both in religion and polity, and in all their 
 measures and designs, the consequence of this opposition is^ 
 
 that what they gain, ice /o^e— -whatever accession of strength 
 or spirits we suffer tliem to get, are all drained out of our own 
 body. 
 
 Let it al«o be observed, that every proselyte they make, im- 
 mediately becomes our professed enemy, not only in religion 
 but in pohcy too ; listinghimself at the same time under two 
 foreign heads, one in the Church and the other in the State. 
 And it generally happens, that such con vi its are remarkably 
 active B.nd furious in the cause they have espoused: whether it 
 is, that fickle minds are naturally fond of new things, or that 
 they think it foi» their honour to make a show of a ihorouoh 
 conviction. 
 
 Lord Ellenborous^h, (so eminently skilled in the profession of 
 the law,) when the debates on the Catholic Petition took place, 
 thus delivered his sentiments on the points treated of in this 
 section. 
 
 " Catholic Emancipation (as it is improperly called, if that 
 term is meant to designate any slavish subjection as still sub- 
 sisting on their part, either in respect of person, property, or 
 the profession of religious faith, or the exercise of religious 
 worship) has been fully attained. The only remaining emanci- 
 pation which they are capable of receiving, must be acquired 
 by an act of their own, by redeeming themselves from the 
 foreign bondage under which they and their ancestors have 
 long unworthily groaned, and from which the State, as it has 
 neither imposed nor continued it, has no adequate means of re- 
 lieving them, consistently with the duty of self-preservation 
 which it owes to itself. Every State, claiming and exercising 
 independent powers of sovereignty, has incidentally belonging 
 to it, as such, the power of binding its subjects by laws of its 
 own, not only paramount to, but exclusive of, any authority or 
 control to be exercised by any other State whatsoever. In so 
 far as any foreign State or person is allowed to exercise an au- 
 thority, breaking in upon this exclusive and independent 
 power of legislation, and enforcement of authority in another 
 State, to that extent such State, so entrenched upon, is not 
 sovereign and ihdep£ndenJt, but admits itself to be subordinate 
 
 ii 
 
 
56 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 57 
 
 M 
 
 
 
 to, and dependant upon the other. The declaration contained 
 in the oath of supremacy, which expresses a denial and renun- 
 ciation of the existence of any power and authority, in respect 
 of ecclesiastical and spiritual matters in any foreign State, po- 
 tentate, or person whatsoever, is but the affirmance of a pro- 
 position, which is logically and politically true, as an essential 
 principle of independent sovereignty, applicable not to this 
 Government only, but to eveiy other Government utider the 
 sun, which claims to possess and exercise the powers of inde- 
 pendent sovereignty. 
 
 " It is not only true, as a maxim of Government, but essen- 
 tially necessaiy to be insisted and acted upon also, in all casesr 
 in which obedience may be questionable, in order to give the 
 State that assurance and test which it has a right to require 
 and receive from its subjects, of their entire submission and ii- 
 delity in all matters to which the power and authority of the 
 
 State can extend. 
 
 " But, it is said, that what is prayed by this Petition is not 
 a matter which impugns the authority of the State in mattery 
 to which its authority extends : that the resei-ve made by 
 our Roman Catholic brethren is only in favour of matters which 
 concern God and their own consciences ; matters of mere ab- 
 stract faith, and mental persuasion. That, however, is not so; 
 the Pope, in virtue of his general spiritual authority, claims 
 authority in matters o^ morals (/. c. of moral conduct, and 
 which extends to all the acts of man) as well as in mattei-s of 
 mere faith: he claims and habitually exercises, on some sub- 
 • jects, a power of dispensing with oaths, and in that respect of 
 nullifying all human sanctions whatsoever, as far as they atlect 
 the conscience through the medium of oaths; he claims and 
 exercises by himself, and delegates to others, an effectual, or 
 supposed eft'ectual power of absolution. What fatal effects 
 that power, as exercised by the Roman Catholic priesthood, 
 and applied to a credulous multitude, is capable of producing 
 npon the civil and political condition of that community in 
 which it is allowed to prevail, let the recent experience of 
 Ireland during the late rebellion attest, wh«r« wretches, reek- 
 
 ing with the blood of their murdered countiymen, have been 
 purified from the guilt of past atrocities, and prepared for the 
 commission of new, by the all-atoning virtues of Popish abso- 
 lution; such a power as tliis over the conscience, engrosses and 
 directs more than half the faculties and energy of the entire 
 man, &c. — But, besides the spiritual power thus capable of 
 being, and thus being in fact abused, the ecclesiastical power 
 of the Church of Rome over its obedient sons is enormous. 
 It establishes and sustains, in the instance of I^-eland, an hierar- 
 chy dependent on the See of Rome, as to the original nomi- 
 nation and subsequent control of its bishops and pastors, 
 through the medium of which it enforces an obedience not in 
 matters of faith only, but in temporal acts and concerns imme- 
 diately connected with the duties and habits of ordinary life; 
 not only in the payment of money for the maintenance of the 
 local ecclesiastical establislimcnt, or for such other purposes 
 connected with their political oeconomy as may be thought fit 
 by the same authority to be enjoined, but in the performance 
 also of rites and ceremonies, particularly that of marria<ye, 
 from which all civil rites originate, and which they enjoin to 
 be performed by their own ministers exclusively, thereby oust- 
 ing the law of the land, and endangering or destroying the legi- 
 timacy of its subjects, and all rights of descent, inheritance, and 
 representation founded thereon. The power of excommunica- 
 tion is, in the hands of their Clergy, a most powerful and dan- 
 gerous engine, not of spiritual and ecclesiastical only, but of 
 temporal power. '' It acts at once upon all the comforts of do- 
 mestic and social life in this world, and upon all the hopes and 
 expectations of happiness in that which is to come. With 
 what harshness and rigour, and with what daring defiance of 
 the established law of the land, this most operative power of 
 interdiction has been recently applied, rot to a few individuals 
 only, but to large multitudes of people, a noble and learned 
 lord detailed to us on a former evenint^ 
 
 " These are a few and but a few of the practical civil incon- 
 veniences which might be instanced, as derived to the State 
 and its subjects from fiie auUiority of the See of Rome, spi- 
 
^B 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGA1W,&T 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 ritual and ecclesiastical, as it is exercised over the sons of it» 
 Church ; producing, as it does, a distracted allegiance in the 
 same person, acknowledging and living under the temporal 
 power of one sovereign, and bound in faith and morals by tlie 
 authority of another, claiming to be his spiritual guide and 
 governor, his ecclesiastical sovereign, and in effect, in all mat- 
 ters of supreme conscientious concernment, God's vicegerent 
 and representative on earth." 
 
 After such irrefragable arguments as these, it is to be hoped 
 that both Houses of Parliament, and especially the Lords spi- 
 ritual, will resolutely withstand every attempt which may bo 
 made in favour of the Roman Catholics. 
 
 ** In Henry the Sixth's time," even ichcn Popery was the es- 
 tablished religion. Judge Blackstone informs us, that " the. 
 Archbishop of Canterl)ury was ever a firm opposer of the 
 usurped power of the Pope in this realm. And, particularly, 
 in the reign of Henry the Fifth, he prevented the King's brother 
 from being then made a cardinal, and legate a latere from the 
 Pope; upon the mere principle of its being within the mischief 
 of papal provisions, and derogatory from the liberties ojf the 
 English Church and Nation. For, as he expressed himself to 
 the King in his letter upon that subject, * he was bound to 
 oppose it by his ligeance, and also to quit himself to God, and 
 the Church of this land, of which God and the King had made 
 him governor.' He also refused to obey the commands of 
 Pope Martin v., who had required him to exert his endeavours 
 to repeal the statute of pramunirey* ^' execrabile illtid statu- 
 tuniy ) (as the holy father phrases it) ; which refusal so far ex- 
 asperated the Court of Rome against him, that at length the 
 Pope issued a bulle to suspend him from his office and au- 
 
 * " The statutes of prwmunire and provisors were made to 
 restrain the usurpations of the Pope ; and this is the original 
 meaning of the offence which we call procmunire ; v\z^ intro- 
 ducing a foreign power into this land, and creating imperium 
 in imperio, by paying that obedience to papal process, which 
 constitutionally belonged to the King alone, long before the 
 Reformation, in the reign of Heniy the Eighth." 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 59 
 
 tljority Which the Archbishop disregarded, and appealed to 
 a general Council. And so sensible were the nation of their 
 pnmate s merits, that the Lords spiritual and temporal, and 
 also the university of Oxford, wrote letter to the Pope in his 
 defence ; and the House of Commons addressed the King to 
 send an embassador forthwith to his Holiness, on behalf of the 
 Archbishop, who had incurred the displeasure of the Pope for 
 opposing the excessive power of the Court of Rome."* 
 
 Here, indeed, is an example worthy of imitation. * May it 
 be conscientiously followed by the present Archbishop of Can- 
 terbuor and all the right reverend bench of Bishops, and also 
 by the Lords temporal ! 
 
 Every Roman Catholic, professing allegiance to a foreign 
 power, must be, at least, a secret enemy to his King and 
 country : and if men's principles would lead them to rebellion 
 surely Government should be on its guard against them, and 
 be resolved t6 protect and preserve itself. 
 
 Such, in fact, is the general spirit of the Romish Church^ 
 and such IS the tendency of all the in^itutions and doctrines' 
 which are peculiar to it, that it never can with safety be ad- 
 mitted to more than a toleration in a Protestant State It is 
 but sound policy, therefore, to discourage the extension of - 
 those institutions and those doctrines. It is most peculiariv 
 wise and even indispensable, in a state which is so free as this 
 IS. and where eveiy man has, or may have, so much influence 
 upon the administration of public affairs. 
 
 Under an arbitrary government, such as that of Russia and 
 some others, the Roman Catholics may perhaps be left with- 
 out any restriction, because, in the appointment or removal of 
 his mmister8orser.'ants,from the highest to the lowest the 
 Sovereign is under no sort of control. Nat only he maV re- 
 move from office, but he may imprison or banish, or even put 
 to death, an individual who shall disturb his goveriiment with- 
 
 nf AM- ?'"'^'L^^''7' ^'' ^'^^- 3- passim, and Dr. Duck's Life 
 of Archbishop Chicele, who was the prelate here sDoken of 
 and the muniiicent founder of All Souls collegrin o£d? ' 
 
 E 2 
 
n 
 
 1 
 
 
 :l 
 
 I 
 
 A,: 
 
 '5 ■ 
 
 tfO STRONG REASONS AGAINsT 
 
 out any of those forms, without any of that public and direct 
 proof, which in this kingdom are recjuired to be adduced and 
 observed, before a man can be put under restraint, or even 
 stopped in his machinations against the State.* In this 
 country therefore, common prudence rendcis it necessary to 
 prevent, by restrictions and disabihties imposed by law, a dan- 
 ger which cannot thus be summarily obviated* or elfectually 
 kept under. 
 
 Such at least was the reasoning of our ancestors when they 
 enacted the laws from the operation of which the Petitioners 
 require, nay, claim as their right, to be relieved. And it must 
 not be forgotten by those who seek to be informed on the sub- 
 ject, that it is the institution of our ancestors, at the very 
 period when our liberties were most clearly defined and es- 
 tablished, which are now brought into question ; and that if 
 indeed the members of the Romish Church have been made 
 subject to " t humiliation and ignominy," this was so settled 
 by those very statesmen whom we have been used to venerate 
 as models of political wisdom, and as being equally enlightened 
 and liberal. 
 
 They thought it, I repeat, not safe, and not even compatible 
 with the existence of a Protestant Church in this country, 
 that members of the Romish persuasion should be allowed to 
 have any share, either directly or indirectly, in the administra- 
 tion of even the lowest departments in the State. They did 
 it upon good grounds; they did it after abundant experience 
 of the mischief which was produced in their time, by the exist- 
 ence within the realm of a body of men, who w^ere avowedly 
 hostile to one part of its Constitution, and whose conscience* 
 were, by the very nature of their religion, subjected to the 
 
 * This is evidently spoken of the <reneral course of justice: 
 and must be taken to be true, notwithstanding the statutes 
 which occasionally pass for the suspension of the Habeas Cor- 
 pus Act, the Proclamation of Martial Law, &c. These are 
 exceptions which only prove the rule. The relief sought for 
 by the Petitioners is against the general law of the kingdom. . 
 
 t Petition, p. 12. , ^ 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 61 
 
 will and control of a foreign potentate, most directly inte- 
 tSlhed '"^"^'"'"'^ ''^' Government, as it was, and is, es- 
 
 " By the laws of this realm, as it has existed ever since the 
 Reformation, the King is declared to be the head (the temporal 
 head) of the Church as well as of the State. There is no 
 Roman Catholic that does not consider this as a direct usurpa- 
 tion upon the lawful power of the Pope: it is a fundamental 
 doctrine of his Church: and, whenever an opportunity has 
 been given, there is not an individual of that communion who 
 lias not shewn that he viewed it in that light. 
 
 This of itself must awaken suspicion "and that suspicion 
 assumes a very serious character, when we consider, that the 
 foreign power which has thus, in the opinion of the members 
 of the Romish Church, been dispossessed of his right, is one 
 who, in all ages, has been remarkably tenacious of his preten- 
 sions, however founded, or under what circumstances soever 
 set up ; that he has scrupled no means by which he could pro- 
 cure them to be established. In the present instance, he has 
 certainly exerted himself to keep that part of the nation which 
 owned his sway, distinct and separate, and even at enmity with 
 the other. '^ 
 
 It was not till after the clearest proof of the existence of 
 th.s dangerous sp.r.t in its full force, not till after conspiracies 
 
 tt rT '^'J^l'P'''^^ «^ '^^trictive laws were made against 
 he Roman Cathol^s; and more especially in Ireland, which 
 s he counto. of the Petitioners: the late system was not es- 
 Ubhshed unt.l the experience of many years, and I believe 
 near two centunes, had shewn the necessity that existed for 
 guarding agamst the consequences of the Papal supremacy, 
 a It operated upon the minds of everj^ member of that com- 
 ui union, 
 
6-2 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 03 
 
 
 >■■ 
 
 SECTION VL 
 
 The protestations of the Roman Catholic Petitioners, in he-- 
 half of themselves and of their Brethren, respecting the su- 
 premacy and infallibility of the Pope, and priestly absolution, 
 not to be depended on ; because it has been aluays the custom 
 of the Church of Rome, when invested with power, to break 
 through their fnost solemn engagements with Protestant States, 
 to depose their Princes, and persecute their heretical Subjects, 
 even unto death. 
 
 It is not improbable, that there may be many well-mean^ 
 ing and unsuspecting persons, according to the fashion of the 
 times, who will join the Petitioners, in condemning the re- 
 flections made in the preceding section, as illiberal and 
 unjust. They will reprobate the narrow ideas of the author, 
 and oppose to his, the more enlightened policy cried up by 
 the Roman Catholics, and the strong language in which they 
 disclaim every intention to subvert the national Establishment, 
 cither in Church or State. They will refer up to thp Petition 
 itself, wherein several of the leading principles pf Popery 
 (in the opinion of Protestants) are pubUcly disavowed, in the 
 most solemn manner, as forming any part of the Catholic 
 creed. 
 
 The language, it must be owned, is so strong, and, in gene* 
 ral, so unequivocal and positive, that I do not wonder such 
 numbers are imposed upon by it, and even induced to con- 
 clude that the Papists have been most falsely accused, and 
 that the principles imputed to them have never been actually 
 held by their Church. That they may not complain of in- 
 justice, or misrepresentation, I shall now lay before the reader 
 their own awful protestations. 
 
 •^ The humble Petition of the Roman Catholics of Ireland 
 whose names are hereunto subscribed, on behalf of them- 
 
 Hclves, and of others of his Majesty's subjects professing, the 
 Roman Catholic religion, 
 " Sheweth, 
 ** That your Petitioners are stedfastly attached to the per- 
 son, family, and government of their most gracious Sove- 
 reign ; that they are impressed with sentiments of affectionate 
 gratitude for the benignant laws which have been enacted for 
 meliorating their condition, during his paternal reign; and 
 and that they contemplate, with rational and decided predi- 
 lection, the admirable principles of the British Constitution. 
 
 " Your Petitioners most humbly state, that they have 
 solemnly and publicly taken the oaths prescribed by law to 
 his Majesty's Roman Catholic subjects, as tests of political 
 and moral principles; and they confidently appeal to the 
 sufferings which they have long endured, and the sacrifices 
 which they still make, rather than violate their consciences 
 (by taking oaths of a religious or spiritual import contrary to 
 their belief), as decisive proofs of their profound and scrupu- 
 lous reverence for the sacred obligation of an oath. 
 
 " Your Petitioners beg leave to represent, that, by these 
 awful tests, they bind themselves in the presence of the All- 
 seeing Deity, whom all classes of Christians adore, to be 
 faithful, and bear true allegiance to their most gracious So- 
 vereign Lord, King George the Third, and him to defend 
 to the utmost of their power against all conspiracies 
 and attempts whatsoever that shall be made against his per- 
 son, crown, or dignity, to do their utmost endeavours to dis- 
 close and make known to his Majesty and his heirs, all trea- 
 sons and traitorous conspiracies which may be formed against 
 him or them, and faithfully to maintain, support, and defend, 
 to the utmost of their power, the succession toihe crown in his 
 Majesty's family against any person or persons whatsoever ;" 
 that « they renounce and abjure obedience and allegiance 
 unto any other person claiming or pretending a right to the 
 crown of this realm ; that it is unchristian and impious to 
 believe that it is lawful in any ways to injure any person 
 whatsoever under pretence of their being heretics, and also 
 
 i|| 
 
 .'* 
 
 1 
 
 m 
 
 ^4 
 
64 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 65 
 
 
 I 
 
 that unchristian and impious principle, that no faith is to be 
 kept with heretics ; that it is no article of their faith, and 
 that they renounce and reject, and abjure the opinion that 
 princes excommunicated by the Pope and Council may be 
 deposed or murdered by their subjects, or by any person 
 whatsoever— that they do not believe that the Pope of Rome, 
 or any other foreign prince, prelate, state, or potentate, hath, 
 or ought to have any temporal or civil jurisdiction within this 
 realm— that they firmly believe that no act, in itself, unjust, 
 immoral, or wicked, can ever be justilied or excused, by or 
 under pretence or colour that it was done for the good of the 
 Church, or in obedience to any ecclesiastical power whatso- 
 ever, and that it is not an article of the Catholic faith ; nei- 
 ther are they thereby required to believe or profess that the 
 Pope is infallible, or that they are bound to obey any order 
 in its own nature immoral, though the Pope or any ecclesiasti- . 
 cal power should issue or direct any such order; but on tbe 
 contrary, they hold that it would be sinful to pay any respect 
 or obedience thereto ; that they do not believe that any sins 
 committed by them, can be forgiven at the mere will of any 
 Pope, or of any priest, or of any person or persons whatever, 
 but that any person who receives absolution for the same 
 without a sincere sorrow for them, and a firm and sincere 
 resolution to avoid future guilt and to atone to God, so far 
 from obtaining thereby any remission of his sins, incurs the 
 additional guilt of violating a sacrament;" and by the same 
 solemn obligation, they are bound and firmly pledged, " to 
 defend to the utmost of their power the settlement and ar- 
 rangement of property in their countiy, as established by the 
 laws now in being; that they have disclaimed, disavowed, 
 and solemnly abjured any intention to subvert the present 
 church-establishment, for the purpose of substituting a Ca- 
 tholic establishment in its stead;" and they have also solemnly 
 sworn, " that they will not exercise any privilege, to 
 w^hich they are or may be entitled, to disturb or weaken the 
 Protestant religion or Protestant government in Ireland." 
 *' They can," also, "with perfect truth affirm, that the 
 
 political and moral principles which are by. these tests asserted, 
 are not only conformable to their opinions and habits, but 
 are expressly inculcated by the religion which they profess." 
 
 Further, " they most explicitly declare, that they do. not 
 seek or wish, in the remotest degree, to injure or encroach 
 upon the rights, privileges, immunities, possessions, or reve- 
 nues, appertaining to the Bishops and Clergy of the Protes- 
 tant religion, as by law established, or to the churches com- 
 mitted to their charge, or to any of them." They also " beg 
 leave most humbly to obser^^e, that they might well and 
 justly insist upon the firm and unabated loyalty of his Ma- 
 jesty's Roman Catholic subjects to their most gracious sove- 
 reign; their profound respect to the legislature, and their 
 dutiful submission to the ,laws— and that they are deeply 
 anxious, at this moment, that a measure should be accom- 
 plished, which will annihilate the principle of religious ani- 
 mosity, and animate all descriptions of his Majesty's subjects 
 in an enthusiastic defence of the best Constitution that has 
 ever yet been established"— and therefore " they most hum- 
 bly trust, that his Majesty's Roman Catholic subjects, hold- 
 ing those principles, will be considered as subjects upon 
 whose fidelity the State may repose the firmest reliance." 
 
 How plausible is all this! And are there any who will 
 dare to call their veracity in question ? Can even one be 
 found so uncharitable as not to give them full credit? Yes- 
 there is one at least— and I may venture to affirm that there 
 are thousands more. For my part, I scruple not to say, that 
 I am " slow of heart to believe all," they have thus so'posi- 
 tively stated. I cannot yield implicit assent, and 1 will give 
 my reasons, after making a few preliminary remarks. 
 
 The Petition has been subscribed by ninety-one persons ; of 
 these six are peers, three are baronets, the rest untitled com^ 
 moners. Of the six peers, one is an English as well as an Irish 
 peer, who lias no property in Ireland, and is an Englishman 
 both by birth and residence. With what propriety therefore 
 this English peer can be styled a Roman Catholic of Ireland, 
 I shall not take upon me to determine. Of the remaining five 
 
 ?" ». 
 
 
 tifci 
 
 
 'A 
 
 m: 
 
 '--4 
 
 1 n. 
 
 m 
 
§6 
 
 Steong reasons against 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 67 
 
 i 
 
 peei*», three may be «aid to bave been created during his pic- 
 seat Majesty*6 reign. Lord Keomaie claimed a peerage under 
 a pateat of Kmg James II. dated after the abdication of that 
 wftfortunate prince, at a time whea he was no longer a king, aiv 1 
 could not create nobility : his present Majesty has been pleased 
 to create him a peer. The ancestors of two others, tlie Lords 
 Fingal and Gormanstown, were attainted for high treason on 
 outlawries; which attainders continued for four generations. 
 His present Majesty was graciously pleased to direct his at- 
 torney-genei-al in Ireland to confess error in these outlawries, 
 on which confession, the outlawries have been reversed, 
 and these noblemen have been restored to the rank of their 
 ancestors. Lord SouthwelFs ancestors were Protestants; 
 his father some time since went to France, and there became 
 a Roman Catholic, and educated his son in that profession. 
 Thus it appears, that the whole Roman Catholic nobility of 
 Ireland, a few years back, did not exceed one or two at the 
 most. I mention this, merely to shew what little cause of 
 complaint there is, for the alleged degradation of the Roman 
 Catholic nobility of that kingdom. Of the three baronets 
 ^ho signed the Petition, two have been created by his 
 
 present Majesty. 
 
 Ireland is divided into thirty-two counties : out of nineteen 
 of these counties there is not one subscriber ; and out of four of 
 the remaining thirteen counties there is but one each. Neither 
 is there the signature of one Romish ecclesiastic to the Peti- 
 tion*, How then does it appear that these Petitioners are 
 
 ♦ The Petition contains a long statement of what the sub- 
 scribers declare to be their " political and moral principles," 
 and openly maintains, that such principles " are not only con- 
 formable to their opinions and habits, but are expressly incul- 
 cated by the religion ichich they profess :" and yet, not one of 
 then* bishops, nor even of their priests, has put his name to it ; 
 the reason for which I suppose to be this. 
 
 In 1793, in order to qualify any of the Roman Catholics for 
 obtaining places under government, or tendering their votes 
 at elections for members of Parliament, the law required them 
 to take an oath, whereby they renounce the infallibility of the 
 
 commissioned by the Roman Catholics of Ireland, or those of 
 England and Scotland, to petition on their behalf, or to express 
 their political or moral principles ? It is much to be suspected 
 that they are self-commissioned, as well by what has been 
 already observed, as by die following ciroumsUnce: frve of 
 the subscribei-s have set themselves forth as delegated by the 
 rest, to procure the presentmeiit of this Petition to tlie two 
 Houses of Parliament, and solicit its success : of these, one is 
 
 Pope ; the power of the priest to give absolution uncondition- 
 ally ; the intention of subverting the present church-establish- 
 ment, and substituting a Roman establishment in its stead • 
 ot overturning the present arrangement of property in Ireland' 
 and ot using the power and privileges demanded by the Ro-' 
 manists, to weaken the Protestant religion and l^rotestant 
 government m Ireland : And, so far as it relates merely to 
 religious opinions, is the same oath which was drawn up bv a 
 Committee of English Romanists, in the year 1790, tobeolfered 
 to the English ministiy at that time, as a proper oath to be ad- 
 ministered to all English Romanists; and the taking thereof to 
 be sanctioned by an Act of Pariiament. This oath, however 
 three out ol the four Apostolic Vicars, the special agents and 
 emissaries of the Pope in England, reprobated and anathema. 
 tized, by an encyclical letter, dated London, Jan. 12 17Qi 
 and commanded all the English Romanists to reject this oath ' 
 statin- that they thus acted with the approbation of the Apos' 
 tohc See, andot all the Romish bishops in Scotland and in Ire^ 
 mnd. And these Vicars had so much influence with the 
 Ministry, that they prevailed upon them to expunge from the 
 oath prescribed by the statute, the abjuration of the Pope's in^ 
 JaUibihty and of the doctrine of unconditional poiver in the 
 priest to absolve. It is also to be remarked, that all the Pro- 
 essors and members of the College of Maynooth in Ireland, 
 (tounded by Government for the education of Romish priests) 
 are, by an Irish statute, exempted from the obligation of taking 
 the oath of 1793. o & 
 
 Is it not hence clear, that since nO Popish Ecclesiastic has 
 ^"7^f.V??^^ t^,e Petition, containing an abjuration of the Pope's 
 iiitallibility, &c. the Petitioners cannot be sincere in declaring- 
 that " they are not required by the Catholic faith to believe of 
 profess that the Pope is infallible ?" They must know that 
 iheir priests profess at least to believe that he is, and, conse- 
 *:uently, that their religion obliges them to inculcate the 
 iioctnne. 
 
 i^i li' 1^ 
 
 
•■■■-J 
 
 ig- 
 
 \ I 
 
 68 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 Mr. Denys Scully, barrister at law, who published in the year 
 1803 a pamphlet in Dublin, entitled, *' An Irish Catholic's 
 Advice to his Brethren how to estimate their present Situation, 
 and repel French Invasion, civil Wars, and Slaver)\" This 
 pamphlet advises the Irish Romanists, in the event of an inva- 
 sion by the French, rather to join the King's standard, than 
 that of Bonaparte, solely on the ground of such conduct being 
 more for their advantage, and not at all on the ground of their 
 allegiance due to their Sovereign. And notwithstanding the 
 specious title of the work, the whole tenor of it is, in my 
 opinion, by the suggestion of ideal grievances, in the most 
 horrid forms, to excite the Romish populace to the most furious 
 acts of insurrection and revenge against \he\v governors ; so that 
 the advice to resist Bonaparte seems to be merely an artifice 
 to protect the author from the legal punishment due to so ma- 
 lignant, vindictive, and atrocious an attack on the conduct of 
 the Protestant Government of Ireland, for two centuries 
 past. The pamphlet overflows with gall ; it will be suffi- 
 cient to extract a passage or two, to give the reader a 
 just idea of its real purpose and tendency. " Limerick was 
 the last place that surrendered to William III ; and never 
 was any place more gallantly and obstinately defended 
 than Limerick had been by our loyal ancestors, who, with 
 Sarsfield at their head, fought for their hereditary King James 
 against a Dutch invader and his hired battalions^ — Page 12, 
 Dublin edition. 
 
 Writing of the gallant army which went to Ireland to punish 
 the Irish rebels and murderers of 1641, he has the following 
 passage : ** You see what misery that army caused her : their 
 tailors, tinkers, smiths, coblers, drummers, and trumpeters, 
 after the slaughter of ouq hundred thousand persons, obtained 
 various estates and lands amongst us." It is to be remarked, 
 that the superior officers of this gallant army thus reviled by 
 Mr. Scully, were the chief instruments in restoring Ireland to 
 the monarchy of England, and that their descendants at thia 
 day compose a most considerable part of the Irish nobility and 
 gentry. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 69 
 
 In another place, Mr. Scully calls the Irish parliament a 
 club, and the place of their meeting their club-house. He also 
 gives the following character of the person he styles the first 
 magistrate : « That he may be liable, like the master of a 
 tamily, to fits of anger, and caprice, and prejudice ; that he 
 may naturally beat times obstinate, ill-humoured, improvident, 
 or even infatuated upon some particular subjects." And, ad- 
 verting to the coronation oath, and to his Majesty's scruples on 
 the score of that oath, respecting the demands made by the 
 Irish Romanists, he undertakes to apologize for his Majesty, 
 and to express his hope that the King will change the opinion 
 which it is generally understood he has entertained. "It is 
 not," says he, "to be imagined that a quibbling crotchet in an 
 oath will circumscribe the justice of the beneficent father of 
 his people."— Can it therefore be imagined, that Mr. Scully i^ 
 a person specially commissioned by the Roman Catholics of 
 Ireland, to solicit the success of a Petition to the representa- 
 tive body of the nation, claiming a right to be put upon an 
 equal footing, in respect to political privileges, with all other 
 his Majesty's subjects, and demanding such boon, on the score 
 of their alleged loyalty, and attachment to the State ? 
 
 I shall now proceed to assign particularly some reasons 
 which have strongly induced me to discredit the avowed prin- 
 ciples of the Petitioners : and, indeed, at such a critical time 
 as this, it becomes every honest man to speak out freely. 
 
 In the first plac^, then, it appears to me, that their profes- 
 sions are not to be depended on, as they bear a mark of false- 
 hood on the very face of them. For, how can these Petitioners 
 affirm, with any show of truth, " in behalf of themselves and 
 other Roman Catholics, that they might well and justly 
 insist upon their profound respect for the Legislature," when, 
 at the same time they complain of " the many incapacities 
 and mconveniences avowedly inflicted upon them by the 
 statutes" of that Legislature, and when, accordin-Iy, they 
 " most earnestly solicit the attention of the honouraWe House 
 to the humiliating and ignominious system of exclusion, 
 reproach, and suspicion, wJiich those statiites geueralc, and 
 
 !«i| 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 I" 
 
 -I 
 
t I 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 i' 
 
 
 70 
 
 8TR01«a REASONS AOAIW3T 
 
 kecft alive" > Or, how can " they justly insist upon their 
 dutiful submission to the laws," when they have been 
 acting in open opposition to there, and defiance of them, 
 and \ave consequently been condemned by the Judges 
 in Court, who had previously informed them, that their 
 conventions and committees were i//ega/-and when they 
 also well know that many thousands of the lower ranks 
 among their brethren, have been engaged, for a senes 
 of years past, in nocturnal depredations, assassmations. 
 conspimcies. and rebellions ; and that even some of their 
 priests have fomented sedition and bloodshed, and have 
 
 openly appeared in anns? 
 
 Again-with what sincerity can they declare, that they 
 have a " rational and decided predilection for the admirable 
 principles of the British Constitution," and pronounce it 
 •• the best diat has ever yet been established," when, an the 
 same Petition, they speak of its " hostile spirit." whereby 
 « they are shut out from almost all the honours, dignities, 
 and offices of trust and emolument in the State, from rank 
 and distinction in his Majesty's Army and Navy, and even 
 from the lowest situations and franchises in the several cities 
 and corporate towns throughout his Majesty's dominions - 
 when they confess that " they severely feel the interdiction 
 of those of their communion, from all municipal stations, 
 from the franchises of all guilds and corporations, and from 
 the patronages and benefits annexed to Ihose situations; and 
 that, "in consequence of their exclusion frt)m theoflicesof 
 sheriffs and suVsheriffs, and of the hostile spirit ot the 
 statutes, they do not fully enjoy certain other inestimable 
 Privileges of the British Constitution, which the law has 
 most jealously maintained and secured to their fellow-Bub- 
 iects " the Protestants-and therefore, " that those manitold 
 incapacities, restraints, and privations, are hurtful arid vexa- 
 tious to their feelings" ? Thus they pretend to' speak, m 
 the hi-hest terms of approbation, of " the admirable pnn- 
 ciples "of our Constitution," and, with the Mme breath, 
 exclaim against its injustice and «*mfef io-TOtds thera: 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIM9« 
 
 n 
 
 and as to the King's supremacy, whkh is an essential part 
 of " the British Constitution/' they utterly disclaim it. 
 
 I now go on to the consideration of other circumstances, 
 which sufficiently evince the insincerity of those Lords and 
 Gentlemen who signed the Petition. 
 
 Now are not they a very small part, indeed, of the body for 
 whom they answer, or rather should answer? According to 
 their own calculations, they are but a 40,000th part. How, 
 then, is it possible, that they should answer for the great mass 
 of their Irish Brethren, whose ignorance, bigotiy, and cruelty, 
 no man of honesty will deny to be both extreme and gross ? 
 At the conclusion of the late i-ebellions in Ireland,, we were 
 told by the Romish priest*, in excuse for themselves, that they 
 could not restrain the insurgents from committing the abomi- 
 nable excesses of which they were guilt}^ Can it then be 
 imagined, that these private Gentlemen and temporal Lords 
 will be equal to the task ? And, truly, they seemed so sensible 
 of the impropriety of supposing, that the generality of the 
 Catholics coincided in sentiments with them, that they sub- 
 scribed the Petition " in behalf of themselves, and" (mark 
 it well !) "of others of his Majesty's subjects, professing 
 the Roman Catholic Religion." Were they not conscious 
 that a numerous majority of them held contrary opinions, 
 they would have subscribed in behalf of all his Majesty's 
 Catholic subjects ; but, as they could not do this with the 
 least consistency, we see how artfully they expressed them- 
 selves on the occasion. 
 
 It is well known, also, how strongly self-interest will ope- 
 rate, and incline men, even against the remonstrances of 
 conscience, to forge infamous falsehoods, and even to per- 
 jure themselves in a court of justice. Is it not then pos- 
 sible, ' that some of the Petitionei-s at least may have been 
 tempted to deceive others, by the most specious, counterfeit 
 professions of candour and truth ? especially, when they 
 are well assured, that they cannot otherwise obtain the ac- 
 coraplishment of their ambitious wishes? That secular 
 aggrandizement is their aim, cannot be doubted, when we 
 
 w 
 
 i;. "i: 
 
 hi • 
 
 I't r 
 
 I' 
 
 I* i. 
 
72 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 73 
 
 A I 
 
 K : 
 
 consider their own express declarations in the Petition- 
 that " by virtue of divers statutes now in force, they are 
 denied the capacity of sitting or voting in either of the 
 honourable Houses of Parliament ; that they are interdicted from 
 all municipal stations, from the franchises of all guilds and 
 corporations, and from the patronage and benefits amiexed to 
 those situations-that they are incapacitated aud disqualified 
 from holding or exercising the offices of sheritts and sub- 
 sherifls, and'various offices of trust, honour, and emolument m 
 the State, in his Majesty's military and naval service, and in 
 the administration of the laws." 
 
 After this, should a false politeness prevent us from sus- 
 pecting them of sinister designs ? ' It may be often said, 
 
 Decipimur specie recti. ^ » t^ • i 
 
 Besides, when we reflect on the horrid spirit of the Romish 
 religion, that it allows not only deceit, but even private assas^ 
 sinations, and public massacres, if the good of the Church may 
 be thereby promoted, why should we, from mistaken delicacy, 
 think and believe that its members are not at all actuated by 
 such motives ? If great private advantages, as well as genera 
 benefit to their Church, are to be derived from authorized 
 fraud and treacheiy, is it any wonder that they should put 
 on a mask, in order to effect these desirable purposes? 
 . But even supposing that the disavowal of some of the most 
 shocking tenets of their Church were not intended to 
 serve their own private ends, yet, such a disavowal of a 
 few individuals can give us no assurance that the See of 
 Rome, under whose jurisdiction they are, has imbibed the 
 
 same principles. 
 
 That their Bishops and Priests do not consider them 
 sincere, in the declarations they have made, seems clear: 
 for if they did, they would have been inflamed with rage, and 
 have viewed them in the same light with Protestants. As 
 heretics, in denying several of the doctrines maintained by 
 their Councils, but particularly the infallibility of the Pope, 
 they would have immediately threatened them with excom- 
 munication, and would have put their menaces into execu- 
 
 lion, if such apostates from the faith persisted in their 
 schismatical errors. At any rate they are expressly, (though 
 unintentionally,) pronounced to be either deluded revolters, 
 from the Catholic Church, or else tcilful deceivers, by one of 
 their own Bishops, and others of their communion ; for, Dr. 
 Troy and Mr. Plowden maintain, that " if any one says, or 
 pretends to insinuate, that modem Roman Catholics differ, 
 in one iota, from their ancestors, he either deceives himself, 
 or wishes to deceive others,'* 
 
 Moreover, by the oaths which they have taken, the Peti- 
 tioners virtually convict their Church of a continued system 
 of imposture, of having prostituted the authority of religion to 
 the most infamous schemes of worldly ambition ; and yet 
 (strange to tell!) they continue members of that Church. 
 There is no article of their religion, (the invocation of saints, 
 communion in one kind, purgatory, and transubstantiation 
 itself,) which is more solemnly decreed, than that which re- 
 lates to the persecution of heretics, and the deposing of kings and 
 emperors, who are either heretics themselves, or abettors of 
 those that are. This doctrine, however, they can " reject, as 
 unchristian and impious,** and yet adhere to the Church which 
 continues to profess it. If they differ from the Church of 
 Rome in such material points, then why do they not leave it? 
 And if they do not believe as that Church believes, then they 
 are not Roman Catholics; and to affirm that they are, is a 
 downright imposition on the credulity of the public. 
 
 I will now come closer to the point, by asking, What numbers 
 are there among the two thousand, and upwards, of priests, in 
 Ireland, who will join in this condemnation of their doctrines 
 as unchristian and impious? How many individuals are there 
 among the three or four millions, which compose the Roinan 
 Catholic population of Ireland, who sincerely accord with the 
 Petitioners in this sentiment? The assertion, indeed, should 
 be well remembered and weighed ; because we mav be as- 
 sured, that it would not have been made, unless it had been 
 thought necessar>^ It does by clear implication admit, that 
 all their professions, nay, all their oaths, unless sanctioned by. 
 
 ir f. 
 
 
 ■fi irim i 5 
 
^: 
 
 V 
 
 , r J -I 
 
 i 
 
 '.."1 
 
 
 74 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 and agreeable to the religion which they hold, are little, or 
 not at all, to be relied upon. It they have thought this asser- 
 tion so material, the contradiction of it must be. at least, 
 equally material; nay, the exposure of its falsehood must, in 
 the mind of eveiV candid person, operate as the strongest evi- 
 dence against their claims. 
 
 The chief ground upon which they rest their hopes of sue- 
 cess, is, that they have taken the oaths prescribed to them, as 
 " tests of their moral and religious principles;" and they ap- 
 peal to « the sufferings, which they have long endured, and 
 the sacrifices they still make, rather than violate their con- 
 sciences, (by taking oaths of a religious or spiritual import, con- 
 trary to their belief,) as decisive proofs of their profound and 
 scrupulous reverence for the sacred obUgation of an oath." 
 
 As to this, I must first obsei-ve, that the oath which they 
 have such an abhorrence of taking, is the oath of Supremacy ; 
 that oath in which is acknowledged the authority and juris- 
 diction of the King in matters ecclesiastical as well as civil. 
 This oath (let it be noted) they do not take, because they hold 
 that the jurisdiction, and authority in matters ecclesiastical with- 
 in this realm, belongs not to the Kinir, but to the Pope. To my 
 mind therefore this is no proof of their scrupulous reverence 
 for the sacred oblifration of an oath. They do not take the 
 oath, because it would be considered by the Pope as an act of 
 rebellion against him, for which they would be excommuni^ 
 cated. This is only simply the case of a man refusing to 
 swear allegiance to a prince, whom he considers as an usu> 
 per, and which certainly, whatever other merits it may have, is 
 never alleged as " a decisive proof of his profound and scrupu- 
 lous reverence for the obUgation of an oath." Their refusing 
 therefore to take this oath, 1 cannot consider as giving much 
 weight to the other oaths, which they have actually taken. 
 
 Besides, if we consider, that the Romish religion admits of 
 deceit, and gives absolution for it, when heretics are in ques- 
 tion, can we be assured, that it is not used on this occasion? 
 The Catholics take 5ome oaths, but one they particularly refuse 
 to take, because, they say, " it is of a religious or spiritual im- 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 76 
 
 port, contraiy to their belief": and therefore they urge this 
 upon us as " a decisive proof of their profound and scrupu- 
 lous reverence for the sacred obligation of an oath." 
 
 The reasoning certainly appears very plausible : but, may 
 it not be ?L\\Jinesse f For if they prevail upon us by such an 
 argument, they then know that we must give them entire 
 credit for all their declarations, concerning their stedfast at- 
 tachment to the person, family, and government of their most 
 gracious Sovereign" — their " decided predilection for the ad- 
 mirable principles of the British Constitution"— their firm re- 
 solution " to defend, to the utmost of their power, the settle- 
 ment of property in their countiy, as established by the laws 
 now in being" — and finally, their " solemn abjuration of any 
 intention to subvert the present Church Establishment, or to 
 weaken the Protestant Religion, or Protestant Government in 
 Ireland." 
 
 By not taking the oath of supremacy, therefore, they may 
 wish to cajole us into the fullest persuasion that they are the 
 most upris^ht and conscientious men upon earth; and, conse- 
 quently, that they may be as safely trusted with a share in the 
 legislature, as any of the most loyal among his Majesty's Pro' 
 testant subjects. 
 
 But, should it even be allowed, that some, or all of the Pe- 
 titioners are sincere in their professions, can \/e be so silly as 
 to imagine, that all the rest of the Catholic body, or the ma- 
 jority of them, are equally so? Then are we credulous in- 
 deed, and deserve to suffer for our credulity ; because the con- 
 duct of the Papists in general, ever since our secession from 
 them, has evinced their hostility to us. 
 
 Should it be still objected,- that, as the Petitioners, and 
 other Romanists, have sworn allegiance in temporal matters, 
 to the Protestant Government under which they live, and 
 have also sworn, that they hold no such doctrine as that " faith 
 is not to be kept with heretics," it is but reasonable to con- 
 clude, that if they did not think themselves bound by such 
 oaths, they would not scruple to take the oath of supremacy, 
 which might qualify them to enjoy the privileges they are 
 
 V 2 
 
 
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 It 
 
 \ 
 
 
 ) ; 
 
 IK- 
 
 n 
 
 J I 
 
76 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 m 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 
 now so ardently in pursuit of. To this it is answered, that 
 the aforesaid doctrine is contained in the decisions of the 
 Lateran Council, a very general one, and so held to be by all 
 Romanists — that the practice of the court of Rome, and of all 
 its vassals and votaries, has been always strictly conformable to 
 such doctrine— that the rece?it publications of the most cele- 
 brated divines of that persuasion, and among others, of Doc- 
 tors Troy and Hussey, one a bishop, the other an archbishop, 
 and both subjects of this empire, state, ** that Roman Ca- 
 tholics consider the express decisions of their general coun- 
 cils, as infaUible authority in points of doctrhie'*— that the 
 rejection of the oath of supremacy by Romanists, -notwith- 
 standing their taking it would entitle them to great privileges, 
 is no proof that they consider themselves bound by oaths, by 
 which they plight their faith to an heretical government, or 
 to heretics in general : because the oath of supremacy con- 
 tains an ahjuration of the supremacy of the Pope, under the 
 title of a foreign prelate ; and such an oath their religion will 
 not permit them to take. Doctor Troy, among others of 
 their eminent divines, tells them, " That Roman Catholics 
 cannot conscientiously abjure the ecclesiastical authority of 
 the bishop of Rome, the supreme jurisdiction of the Pope in 
 spirituals being a fundamental article of the Romish faith.*' 
 But the express decisions of the Council of Lateran (infallible 
 authority with them in points of doctrine) tell them, that I'o 
 faith is to be kept icith heretics^ and that all pledges of faith 
 given to heretics, by oaths or otherwise, " are absolutely null 
 and void, consequently are not binding, and ought not to be 
 observed ; so that they may take such oaths, and break them 
 at their pleasure, as absolute nullities in themselves:" and 
 such has been the constant and avowed practice of their 
 
 Church. 
 
 \ That no reliance can be placed on the professions of Ro- 
 manists is evident; for if we consult the pages of history, we 
 shall find that the adherents of the Popes have never been 
 backward .in making such professions, or in breaking them 
 when made. We have the example of Queen Mary, who 
 
 77 
 
 certainly broke through every restraint, and was guilty of act- 
 ing, not only most cruelly, but against her word most solemnly 
 pledged. She too began her reign with expressing the same 
 liberal ideas which are now professed. In her first procla- 
 mation concerning religion, " She willeth and straitly chargeth 
 and commandeth all her good loving subjects to live together 
 in quiet sort, leaving those new found devilish terms of Papist 
 and Heretic and such like, and applying their whole care, study 
 and travel to live in the fear of God, exercising their conver- 
 sation in such charitable and godly doings, as their lives may 
 indeed express the great hunger and thirst of God's glory,*' 
 &c.* Could any language be more liberal, or more unlike 
 that of a persecutor? And yet this good lady must, at that 
 time, have had in her contemplation the cruelties which she so 
 soon afterwards exercised. It is notorious, also, that James 
 II. made the same professions upon his accession to the crown j 
 and it is equally notorious that he took the very first opportu- 
 nity of breaking them, I know not why the professions which 
 any persons holding the same creed make upon the same points 
 are to be more depended upon than those of these two crown- 
 ed headsf: for, in violating their faith, they could be actuated 
 only by a mistaken and ill-directed zeal ; every temporal mo- 
 tive operated the other way ; the measures which they thus 
 pursued, in breach of their faith, tended to diminish and not to 
 increase their power. To the former of them they produced 
 only disquiet and dissatisfaction, and to the latter the loss of 
 his kingdom. Surely, then, when we see those who are in 
 full possession of power, (merely because they are under such 
 influence,) acting not only contrary to their word, but t<^their 
 true interests — when we see this take place in the case of these 
 two monarchs, who were generally considered as persons of 
 
 * See Wilkins' Concilia, v. 4. 
 
 t Wheit James made his profession and promise to main- 
 tain all the just rights and liberties of his subjects, it was said, 
 ** We have now the word of a King, a word never broken." 
 See Hume, vol. 8, chap. 70. 
 
 ' ii. 
 
 1^;; 
 
 i. 
 
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 ■iA 
 
 .:?i 
 
 
 'it. ^■. 
 
 78 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 Sincerity and honour-when, notwithstanding, we see that 
 their promises could not be depended on, in any case where 
 the interest of their religion was concerned, shall we not be ex- 
 cused, if we hesitate to repose implicit confidence m the de- 
 clarations, and even the oaths of men, who are. m truth, con- 
 tending for rank and for power; who, in the application which 
 they make, and the language which they hold, have m view 
 the advancement of their temporal as well as of their religious 
 
 concerns? . ^ , j u *. 
 
 If we advert to the late insurrections in Ireland, have not 
 the most particular details been given of Roman Catholics, 
 who took loyal oaths at the moment, when they were the most 
 deeply engaged in the late rebellion ? Some of the very men 
 who were killed or taken with arms in their hands, were re- 
 cognized as having but just before disclaimed, in the most 
 solemn appeals to God, every intention of rebellion. 1 will 
 add, further, that, by their allegiance, and, by their oaths, the 
 Boman Catholics were bound to disclose all traitorous con- 
 spiracies against the Government: but 1 will ask, in a rebellion 
 so widely diffused, and which must have been known to hun- 
 dreds of thousands, nay millions, how many came forward 
 
 with such information ? ' . . 
 
 The inference which I mean to dmw from this, is, that it is 
 most likely what has been, is, and ever will be; and to insist, 
 that it is wise and allowable to reason from past events to the 
 present ^lid the future. We are also justified in using such 
 reasoning, when we consider the idea which Dr. Milner (titular 
 bishop of Winchester) gives us of the obligation of an oath. 
 I do not charge it upon him as his own particular notion. I 
 believe that it is correctly the opinion of his Church, and that 
 which it has acted upon in all ages. When I have stated it, I 
 shall leave all comment to others. Only, after this, let not the 
 Roman Catholics complain, if we do not repose in the oaths 
 which they take, or offer to take, all the confidence which they 
 
 require. 
 
 Dr. Milner, in speaking of the coronation oath, and deny- 
 ing that it bound the Sovereign in such manner as by some it 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 79 
 
 is supposed to do*, says, (addressing himself to Mr. Reeves,) 
 '* Sir, give me leave to remind you that every human law, and 
 every promise or other engagement, however confirmed by 
 OATH, must necessarily turn upon the cardinal virtue o/pru- 
 DENCE, which implies that it depends, as to the obliga- 
 tion OF FULFILLING IT, in such and such circumstances, on 
 
 THE QUESTION OF EXPEDIENCY ! " 
 
 The obligation of an oath a question of expediency!!! — But 
 take the Gentleman's explanation : " After all, this is saying 
 no more than that the eternal and immutable law of 
 NATURE, or rather of God, is paramount to all subsequent obli- 
 gations which we may take upon ourselves, whenever they ap- 
 pear to militate against each other/** 
 
 What more could the rankest of Jacobins have said ? Have 
 we not here their very jargon of the " inalienable rights of 
 man ? '* What breach of faith could not be vindicated by such 
 a principle ? This is, indeed, no more than was obsei-ved by 
 Charles I., that the maxims of the republicans in his time were 
 all taken from the Popish doctors. Thus it was, that, accord- 
 ing to a well-known writer, they argued — 
 
 " 'Tis he who made the oath that breaks it, — 
 Not he that for convenience takes it." Hudibras. 
 
 r 
 
 Indeed, I should not at all wonder, that, if the great men 
 among the Catholics find they cannot be admitted to sit, in 
 both Houses of Parliament, without taking the oath of supre- 
 macy (v/hich all its members are obliged to do), they should 
 at last consent to it, as a duty they owe to the Church of 
 Rome ; and, by Jesuitical sophistiy, be taught, that it is no 
 sin to put on the profession of Protestantism, for a season, if 
 thereby they may eventually serve the interests of Popery. 
 
 That his Holiness of Rome authorises such conduct, is evi- 
 dent from the case of Parsons* This Jesuit was appointea 
 superior in a mission to England, in order to promote Popery 
 
 * Case of Conscience, stated, &c. Sold by Faulder, p. 44. 
 t Biograph. Diction. Life of Parsons. 
 
 It 
 
 1 
 
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 If 
 
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 ^. 
 
I'- 
 
 SO 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 in this kingdom. But he and his colleagues could not safely 
 come into these realms, because Pius V. had not only ab- 
 solved the subjects of Queen Elizabeth from their oath of alle- 
 giance, but pronounced an anathema against all those who 
 should obey her. However, Gregory XI IL removed this bin- 
 derance, for he gave them a faculty, dispensing with their 
 obedience to the Queen, notwithstanding the bull of his pre- 
 decessor. Thus Papists of the worst sort appeared Protestant 
 subjects, and this by Papal authority. 
 
 While they could not do better, they were allowed, by 
 the Pope, to swear an oath of allegiance to Queen Elizabeth. 
 But when the King of Spain had fitted out his Armada, by 
 which he hoped to make an entire conquest of England, they 
 were discharged from the obligation of their oath. This was 
 signified to them by cardinal Allen, then head of the English 
 Catholics, in an admonition to the nobility of England, whom, 
 notwithstanding the sacred engagements they had come under 
 to Queen Elizabeth, he called upon, and warmly exhorted to 
 appear for the old cause; or, in other words, to unite their 
 endeavours, and exert themselves to the utmost, for destroy- 
 ing the Queen, and all English Protestants. Hence it is easy 
 to see what may be expected from Irish and British Papists, 
 should they once get the upper hand. Then, heretici extirpan- 
 di, excommunicated heretics are to be exdrpated, would be 
 
 the cry.* 
 
 • In our unfortunate war with America, the people of Great 
 Britain had striking proofs of the pretended sincerity of Popish 
 assurances, from the insidious conduct of our Roman Catholic 
 neighbours, France not only publicly protested against the 
 conduct of our American colonies, but proceeded so far in her 
 plan of duplicity, as to order the American privateers to leave 
 her ports ; and Spain gave us to understand, that she was too 
 much interested for her own colonies to encourage such an 
 example of disobedience to the mother country. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 81 
 
 Bennett's Memorial of the Reformation, p. 33. 
 
 Our Ministry, satisfied with these delusive appearances of 
 support, trusted to the amity of France and Spain, and rested 
 in security. They knew that treachery formed no part of the 
 system of British politics, and expected that sincerity from the 
 House of Bourbon, which characterises our conduct, and 
 which is the glory of this nation. 
 
 What was the consequence? At the very time when 
 Papists were receiving favours from this Government, our 
 prof essing friends laid aside the mask, and appeared in the 
 blackest colours of baseness and perfidy. Regardless of 
 their public disavowals of the American cause, and their 
 solemn protestations to the British Ministry, their most 
 Christian and Catholic Majesties, without the least provoca- 
 tion, contrary to the faith of treaties, and to the law of 
 nations, united for our destruction. And shall we, after such 
 circumventive tergiversation, in Roman Catholic nations, trust 
 to the temporising protestations of Papists, and put weapons 
 into their hands to be turned against ourselves ? God forbid ! 
 The national credulity, and unsuspecting honesty of 
 the English, subject them to great impositions, and 
 often render them the dupes of pretended Patriots and 
 artful demagogues. But, upon this occasion, I trust they 
 will join to the innocence of doves, the wisdom of serpents, 
 " Beware of men," says that God who " knows what is in 
 man.** Though a facility of disposition is congenial to the 
 English, yet good sense as strongly marks their character. 
 From this circumstance, I entertain a flattering prospect, that 
 after the intimations here given, you will arm yourselves with 
 vigilance and circumspection, against every sly attack upon 
 your understanding and judgment. 
 
 This caution is absolutely necessary, because numbers are 
 too apt to be led astray, " by the cunning craftiness of men, 
 whereby they lie in wait to deceive.** Where the passions 
 and interests of men are strongly excited, it becomes us to be 
 careful how we admit the most plausible declarations. " The 
 professions of princes,** (says Lesley,) " when a crown is the 
 bait, is but a slender security.** And, surely, with as 
 
 
 !i{ 
 
 .':t 
 
 
 
82 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 33 
 
 much reason, may we suspect the professions of Roman 
 Catholics, when the triple crown of the Pope, the establish- 
 ment of their religion, upon the downfall of what they 
 deem heresy, and their own particular exaltation to posts 
 of honour and great profit, are the glittering baits which 
 present themselves. 
 
 On the 20th of May, 1807, ** An Address of several of his 
 Majesty's Roman Catholic Subjects to their Protestant Fellow- 
 subjects," appeared in some of the London public prints. 
 It was signed by " John Douglass, D. D. Vic. Ap. Lonr and 
 By fifty-eight other Catholics, who, 1 presume, were men of 
 consequence in the Romish communion. Herein they laid 
 before "their Protestant fellow countrymen, and fellow 
 subjects, what they were pleased to call, ** unanstcerahle do- 
 cuments of the purity and integrity of the religious and civil 
 principles of all his Majesty's Roman Catholic subjects, in 
 respect to their King and Country." And then, as if fully 
 confident of the success of their appeal,they twice put this 
 question, " Such being our civil and religious principles, is 
 there in them a single tenet which is incompatible with the 
 purest loyalty, or which, in the slightest degree, interferes with 
 theduty we owe to God, our King, or our Countiy ?" 
 
 "The first document they present,, is, the oath and 
 DECLARATION prescribed by the British Parliament of the 
 thirty.first of his present Majesty, and which is taken by 
 ALL English Catholics— The next documents are the 
 oaths and DECLARATIONS, prescribed by the Acts of the 
 Irish Parliament to Irish Roman Catholics, and which are 
 taken by them all,"' These contain precisely the same senti- 
 ments which the Irish Petitioners have avowed in their 
 Address to the British Parliament. The English Catholics 
 also affirm, " that there is not, in any of them, a single prin- 
 cipie, which every Roman Catholic subject of his Majesty 
 dots not profess, or which, if his King and Country required 
 it, he would not think it his duty to seal with his blood." 
 
 They moreover assert, that, at the request of Mr. Pitt, who 
 wished "to be furnished with authentic evidence of the 
 
 
 opinions of the Roman Catholic clergy, and the Roman 
 Catholic Universities abroad, the Universities of Paris, Lovain, 
 Alcala, Doway, Salamanca, and Valadolid, they answered 
 unanimously, 
 
 " 1. That the Pope, or Cardinals, or any body of men, or 
 any individual of the Church of Rome, has not any civil 
 authority, power, jurisdiction, or pre-eminence whatsoever, 
 within the realm of England. 
 
 "2. That the Pope, or Cardinals, or any body of men, or 
 any individual of the Church of Rome, cannot absolve or 
 dispense with his Majesty's subjects from their oath of 
 allegiance, upon any pretext whatsoever. 
 
 " 3. That there is no principle in the tenets of the Catholic 
 faith, by which Catholics are justified in not keeping faith 
 with heretics, or other persons differing from them in religious 
 opinions, in any transactions either of a public or a private 
 
 nature." 
 
 Now, most certainly, if we had reason to believe that these 
 were their real sentiments, the penal laws, of which they 
 so loudly complain, might be repealed, as useless. But (un- 
 fortunately for their cause) matters of fact are against them, 
 and these are stubborn things. Indeed, they who signed the 
 Address, seemed sensible of this; and therefore they put 
 these questions, as in the mouth of a Protestant objector, 
 " Are these principles really instilled into Roman Catholics ? 
 Do their actions correspond with them ?" 
 
 As it is upon this ground that the weight of the whole 
 argument is founded, because actions always speak more 
 powerfully than words, one might suppose, that they would 
 have taken great pains to prove, that their actions did corres- 
 pond with their principles. But this was a subject which 
 they knew would not bear investigation ; and, accordingly, 
 they artfully evaded it, and only answered the queries of the 
 Protestant by a short one of their own, ' In reply, we ask, 
 are there not, at this very moment, thousands of his Majesty's 
 Roman Catholic subjects, who daily and hourly make the 
 roost heroic exertions and sacriiices, in those fleets and 
 
 i<i 
 
"¥■ 
 
 ^^^ 
 
 STRONG REASONS ACA13C8T 
 
 
 h 
 
 
 Ji 
 
 armies, to whose patient and adventurous courage it is owing, 
 that we are still blessed with a King and a Country ?" 
 
 Very modest, truly! Doubtless, these English Catholics 
 must have read ** A Letter to a Nobleman on the proposed 
 Repeal of the Penal Laws," written by " Charles Butler, Esq. 
 of Lincoln' 6-Inn," a person of some reputation among them, 
 as a lawyer and conveyancer. He states, that if the Irish 
 Romanists did not flock to the standard of Britain, frightful 
 indeed would be the solitude of her camps and her fleets. 
 Alas, poor Britain ! According to this author, and the de- 
 claration above recited, the Roman Catholics are our ofi/y, 
 or at least our chief defenders ! 
 
 But 1 would ask these vaunting Gentlemen, 1. Whether the 
 Protestant soldiers and sailors are not far more numerous 
 than those of the Romish religion ? 2. Whether they do not 
 believe, as I do, that the Protestants of Great Britain, and 
 Ireland, could furnish sulFicient armies and fleets, if Romanists 
 •were wholly excluded? 3. Whether the late alarming 
 mutiny in the fleet, at the Nore, was not excited entirely by 
 their Catholic Brethren? 4. Whether they think, that these 
 rebellious sailors were then serving their King and their Coun- 
 try 9 5. Whether it was not on account of the disaffection then 
 manifested to their King and their Country , that the recruit- 
 ing officers, for some time, refused to enlist any Irish Ro- 
 manists, for the marine service ? And (5. Whether they can 
 possibly imagine, that " the patient and adventurous courage" 
 which, at other times, has been conspicuous, was " owing" to 
 the loyalty of the Catholics, to the strong desire they felt, to 
 be *• blessed with a" Protestant " King, and a Country" 
 where the Protestant religion was established by law ? 
 
 In the army, it is supposed that nine tenths of the common 
 soldiers are Protestants; and the degree of merit which 
 attaches to Romish soldiers or sailors, in countries remote 
 from their native land, removed from the baneful influence 
 of their priests, and subject to the strictest militaiy and 
 nautical discipline, is so very minute, that its value i§ not 
 easily appreciated. They enlist for the lounty they receive— 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 85 
 
 they are paid for their allotted service, and obliged to perform 
 it. If they were deficient in it, they would he Jlogged for it; 
 and if they were found guilty of treachery or cowardice, they 
 would be shot. Besides, they are stimulated to " courage,** 
 by the powerfid consideration, that if they do not conquer, 
 they must die, or drag out a miserable existence, as prisoners, 
 in an enemy's land. When a Scotch General once, at the 
 head of his troops, addressed them thus, " See you yon bra 
 fellows coming down the hill ! If you dinna fell them, they 
 will fell you," they instantly rushed on the advancing foe, 
 with impetuous fury, and completely defeated them. 
 
 The Irish, also, (whether Papists or Protestants,) are na- 
 turally a brave and intrepid people, fired with a spirit of 
 martial glory ; so that there is no necessity for forcing them 
 into our fleets or navies. They are not dragged into our 
 service in chains, like the population of France. They 
 likewise see, that the soldiers and sailors live better than 
 the Irish labourers ; and prefering a military life to hedging, 
 ditching, and digging potatoes, they enlist in numbers. 
 
 Moreover, great honours and rewards are frequently con- 
 ferred on those who signalize themselves in battle : and we 
 likewise see, in the common avocations of life, that the 
 working classes will diligently attend to their business, not 
 from love to their employers, (though this sometimes may be 
 the case, if they have indulgent masters,) but from regard to 
 their own interest. This is the spring that sets all in motion. 
 It is also certain, that even foreign mercenaries, as well as 
 " thousands of his Majesty's Roman Catholic subjects, daily 
 and hourly make the most heroic exertions and sacrifices in 
 our armies," merely because an opposite conduct would be a 
 disgrace to themselves and their profession, and a forfeiture of 
 the pay for which they fight. War is their business, aiid 
 therefore they must shew " patient and adventurous courage," 
 if they expect their icages. And though ice are still " blessed 
 with a King and a Country," yet no one supposes that the 
 armies of aliens flght so much for them, as for their oivn 
 honour and advantage. 
 
S6 
 
 STRONG HEASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 87 
 
 1 
 
 if 
 
 From these observations, it clearly appears, that what 
 Doctor Douglass and his fifty-eight Roman Catholic brethren 
 have said, concerning the soldiers and sailors belongmg to 
 their Church, has not the least foundation in truth; and, 
 therefore, can never be an answer to that question put to 
 them by Protestants, " Do your actions correspond with 
 your principles, as avowed in both the Addresses we have been 
 considering? But, lest the reasoning which has been here 
 produced should not be deemed decisive, 1 shall now proceed 
 to shew, that the actions and professions of the Catholics 
 have been, and are still, perfectly at variance. 
 
 The Petitioners to Parliament profess to abhor and detest 
 what has ever been considered articles of faith maintained by 
 the Church of Rome. But if we are to give credit to the se- 
 veral works which have lately been published in Ireland by 
 the prissts in that Church, we must believe, that Roman 
 Catholics are exactly in sentiment what they were centuries 
 ago. Indeed, how to reconcile the several Popish produc- 
 tions with the declarations contained in the Petition, is a task, 
 I must acknowledge, too arduous for me, and, I believe, for 
 the Catholics themselves. I must, therefore, either conclude 
 that the Priests in Ireland know the real sentiments of the 
 people, and that Roman Catholics are what they always were, 
 or that the Petitioners have dissented from the Church of 
 Rome, and if so, they require no bill to emancipate them. Or 
 that the teal sentiments of the Roman Catholics are disguised, 
 for the purpose of obtaining the object they have in view. 
 
 Let us first take into consideration those words of the Peti- 
 tioners, " that they do not believe that the Pope of Rome, 
 or any other foreign prince, prelate, state, or potentate, hath, 
 or ought to have, any temporal or civil jurisdiction, power, 
 superiority, or pre-eminence, within this realm." 
 
 In what manner the Roman Catholics of Ireland own and ac- 
 knowledge the Pope, appears from what is printed in tire front 
 of nearly all the Catholic prayer-books now in use, from which 
 I have selected the following : " Pope Clement XIV. the 
 5th of April, lllil, granted an indulgence^ of seven years, and 
 
 seven quarantines to all the Catholics of this kingdom, as often 
 as they devoutly repeat acts of Contrition, on Faith, 
 Hope, and Charity : the daily practice of which is most 
 earnestly recommended to the faithful, as an excellent form 
 of prayer. — This indulgences may be applied for the relief of 
 the souls in purgatory." 
 
 That the Pope's power extends to Ireland will further ap- 
 pear, when it is considered he appoints all the titular bishops 
 there: and, when he is considered as a foreign prince, in con- 
 nection with Buonaparte, is it possible that the Irish Roman 
 Catholics can think, that Parliament or our Sovereign will 
 pass an act to extend their power within these realms ? 
 
 One of their archbishops, Dr. Troy, observes, that " HE 
 (the Pope) is the guardian of the general canons, he can alo7ie 
 dispense in (with) tiiem,' proprio jure, or by inherent right: 
 others enjoy that power by delegation from him. The erec- 
 tion, suppression, and union of bishopricks, and other par- 
 ticular benefices ; the elevation of sees to the metropolitan 
 dignity and jurisdiction ; the institution of general fasts and 
 holidays, and dispensations from their obser%^ances ; the regu- 
 lation and inspection of our liturgy ; appeals from ecclesiasti- 
 cal courts to his supreme tribunal; the suspension and restora- 
 tion of bishops ;' numberless other particulars of our church 
 discipline, mentioned in the canons, depend on the Pope, 
 as on our ecclesiastical superior, and are connected with his 
 primacy and jurisdiction in the universal Church." 
 
 He also informs the Roman Catholics of Ireland, that 
 " Henry the Vlllth of England, was the first Christian 
 prince that assumed ecclesiastical supremacy, and commanded 
 an enslaved Parliatnent to enact it as a law of the state. The 
 Catholics consider it an usurpation, and on Catholic princi- 
 ples deny the competency of any power or tribunal to regulate 
 1. their ecclesiastical discipline." 
 
 Now, though the Petitioners pretend to disclaim the tem- 
 poral jxirisdiction of the Pope, yet they adhere to the Pope's 
 ecclesiastical supremacy, under which the priests in their 
 church derive and exercise the power they assume, whi^h is 
 
 \ 
 
88 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 1^1' 
 
 h 
 
 i^i 
 
 hi 
 
 I 
 
 .; 
 
 not a little in Ireland. Dr. Troy admits, that appeals are 
 from inferior Roman Catholic Ecclesiastic Courts m Ireland, 
 to the Pope's Supreme Tribunal; and the nature of the 
 jurisdiction, exercised in Ireland, may be easily obtained 
 from a variety of facts. A priest, who acted as judge m the 
 Consistorial Court of Elphin, in December, 1792, cited par- 
 lies who had been married by a priest, and who had coha. 
 hited together as man and wife, in a cause of nullity of mar- 
 riage. The consequence was, that he declared the marriage 
 null and void, and the woman was turned out upon the 
 world. She complained to one of the representatives of the 
 county, and he espoused her cause, and remonstrated against 
 such proceedings, but in vain; this judge insisted on enforcmg 
 his sentence, and in justification thereof, produced a decree 
 of the Council of Trent ! ! It is therefore evident, that at 
 present, we h2Lve 2i foreign jurisdiction in Ivelund, governed by 
 the laws of a Foreign Prince, the Most Holy Pope! 
 who, by the plenitude of his ecclesiastical and sovereign 
 power, could take the crown of Lewis of France, and place it 
 on the head of Buonaparte, the scourge and curse of Europe. 
 
 It is true Dr. Troy declares, that while Catholics deny the 
 right of any power to regulate their discipline, " they con- 
 scientiously respect the sovereign power in all temporal and 
 civil concerns." And the Petitioners profess the same senti- 
 ments, and declare their approbation of thfe laws now in being. 
 But how often is it evident in Ireland, that they have not 
 recanted the old doctrine-A^o/a/^/i is to be kept with heretics. 
 Did the Rev. Father Gahan respect the sovereign power, 
 when he was called to give evidence at the assizes of Trim, in 
 the county of Meath, in the case of Lord Dunboyne } No; 
 he would not give the couit any satisfaction, and assigned as a 
 reason, that no tribunal could force him to declare what ivas im^ 
 parted to him in confession. For the satisfaction of such as may 
 not be acquainted with the case, I will state it. Lord Dun- 
 boyne, titular bishop of Cork, professed to conform to the 
 Protestant Established Church, but died in the bosom of the 
 Church of Rome, and was attended by this Gahan. He left 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS,' 
 
 all his property, past his relations, to the Roman Catholic 
 College ; the next of kin commenced a suit for the recovery 
 of the same, and the issue of the suit depended upon the fact, 
 whether Lord Dunboyne died a Romaa Catholic or not. 
 But this question Gahan refused answering, by declining the 
 authority of the Court. 
 
 It is also a well-known fact, that even in a case of robbery 
 or murder, a priest will not divulge, or give evidence, of what 
 has been imparted to him in confession. Very frequently 
 they will bring stolen property to the owner, having obtained 
 it from the thief; but the name of the robber is never commu- 
 nicated. And it is very common, even in the capital, for 
 persons who have had their pockets picked, to look to the 
 priest as the most effectual medium to recover their property. 
 A priest, whose own brother was robbed and murdered, 
 gave the murderer absolution, because he imparted to him 
 the information in confession; nor was the least notice 
 taken of it, till the priest himself was stopped, in the dark, by 
 the same ruffian. When he was taken and tried, he confessed 
 that on the spot where he stopped the priest, he had murdered 
 his brother. 
 
 Many facts might be produced to shew, that Roman Ca- 
 tholic priests in Ireland do not respect the civil law, or sove- 
 reign power ; but I shall only remark what Lord Clare ob- 
 serves of several who were summoned, from the South of Ire- 
 land, to give evidence before a secret Committee of the Irish 
 House of Commons, respecting some persons who had voted 
 at the general election, but that they all denied the jurisdiction of 
 the Committee *; and yet these men will talk of paying every 
 respect to the laws of their country. 
 
 ♦ Having such testimonies even from the Roman Catholics 
 of the present day, that tliese pernicious principles, of a fo- 
 reign jurisdiction, superior to that of the civil government of 
 Great Britain, and of the absolute luconsistency of all Tolera- 
 Hon with the authority of an infallible Church, are still among 
 the leading maxims of that sect, the Legislature of Great Bri- 
 tain, the palarons and protectors of our Protestant settlement 
 
§0 
 
 STRONG nEA»0>S ACAlKSl 
 
 THE CATHOtIC CLAIMS. 
 
 91 
 
 M £ 
 
 Now supposing that Catholic Emancipation should bo ob- 
 hiined/amla Roman Catholic priest bo intnisied with the 
 administration of the law, ?s a magistiale, how c4>uld he act 
 faithfully to the country, so long as he admits of an ccclesias. 
 tical government, not accountable to tht» laws ot the countiy? 
 Should a man, ^^ho has committed robUeiy or murdo-, go to 
 him as his Reverence and Confessor, accorrling to his office 
 and clerical character, he must not, and will not nnpart, or 
 crive evidence, of what is committed to him m confession. A 
 Roman Catholic priest, as a magistrate, tberefore, might give 
 the greatest encouragement to every act of injustice. 
 
 And, indeed, to this, some of the principles of their rdigwu 
 (if it may be called by that sacred name) naturally lead them. 
 Well aware of this objection, wliich is so often made to them, 
 the Petitioners have declared upon oath, - that they firmly 
 believe that no act, in itself ui\just, immoral, or wicked, can 
 ever be justified or excused, by or under pretence or colour 
 that it was done for the good of the Church, or ia obedience 
 to any ecclesiastical power whatsoever, and that it is not an 
 article of the Catholic faith r But it is evident, notwithstand- 
 ing, from the testimony of their priests, who ought to know 
 better, that the above solemn declaration is not founded on 
 truth. Father Gahan says, - The Roman Catholic Church 
 cuts off from her communion, every one who denies, alters, or 
 retrenches one article of faith. It is thus she presents a per- 
 feet unity in her behalf." To prove that Pope Pius VII. the 
 present Pope, believes all that his predecessors believed, and 
 curses all that they cursed ; and that the Romish Church is the 
 same, he remarks again, " The Holy Church is the same m 
 the continual succession of her pastors, a list of whom St. Ire. 
 nwus brings down from St. Fife r to Ekutheris ; St. Optatus 
 
 civil and religious, are fully justified in excluding Papists 
 from all those privileges to which those citizens are inti led 
 who acknowledge the supremacy of the civil powers in a I the 
 departments of Government, and on that toundation pledgt 
 their faith and allegiance to them. 
 
 brings it t6 Siricius ; St. Augustine brings it to Anastasius ; 
 and after Anastasius, all ecclesiastical writers extend it to Pirn 
 VII. who this day acknowledges all his predecessors as lawful 
 FfcflA-^ofJesu^ Christ, believes all that ihey believed, defined^ 
 and condemned; and approves all that they have approved." 
 
 That the sentiments maintained by the priests are in unison 
 with the Catholic faitli, is evident from the creed' of Pope 
 Pius l\. the standard of the Popish faith. " I do embrace 
 all and every thing that hath been defined and declared by the 
 holy Council of Trent," &c.— And all other things contrary 
 thereto, and all heresies, condemned, rejected, and anathema- 
 tized by the Church, I do likewise condemn, reject and ana- 
 thematize:' So that, as Father Gahan says, Roman Catholics 
 are obliged to believe what their Church decrees. 
 
 To any person wlio ife the least acquainted witli ecclesias- 
 tical history, it must appear that the sentiments cx^firessed by 
 the Petitionei-s, as members of the Roman Catholic Church, 
 are very oppoiiite from what has been espoused by the mem- 
 bers of that Church in nil ages. Do the Catholics of Ireland, 
 as Mr. Gahan says, believe all that was ever maintained by 
 the Pope and Church of Rome? then they believe contrary 
 to the langurvG:e of this Petition, that any a^^t in itself, however 
 immoral, they are bound to obey. I will just give a few 
 short extracts to prove that this sentiment is maintained by 
 that Church. 
 
 Popc INNOCENT III. says, " \Yg may, according to the 
 fulness of our power, dispose of the law, and dispense above 
 law/* And in the first book, Gregory, tlie .0th decretal, at 
 the 7th (ifle,'chap. ;j, we have an epistle of the said Pope 
 Innocent, Where he «^peaketh thus: *« Thope whom the Bi- 
 shop of Rome doth separate, it is not a man that separrilefh 
 them, but God. For the Pope holdcth place on earth, not 
 simply of a man but' of tnie God.'* And ac.yain, " That he 
 hath cel'cstial govrrrtments, and tberelbie may change the 
 nature of things, applying the suhstanoe of the one to the 
 other, 'of il'othrng can create sometlirng: and a decree that is 
 roid He can make rt m* force • for in matters that h itill have 
 
M 
 
 STRONG REASOWS AGAINfeT 
 
 TH£ CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 99 
 
 come to pass, his willis Wis reason; and no man qucstioneth 
 him, wherefore do you thai? For he can dispense abovf 
 law! and of INJUSTICE can make JUSTICE'." [Pretty 
 Christianity! this is of a sort with those who say, " Let 
 us do evil that good may come of it, whose damnation it 
 just] The famous Cardinal Bellarminc, in the 4th book De 
 Pontif, chap. 5, says, " If the Pope should err in command- 
 ing VICE, and forbidding VIRTUE, the Church were bound 
 to\elieve that vice be good and virtue bad, unless she would 
 sin against her own conscience." And again, in chap. 31, he 
 saith, " In good sense and judgment Christ hath given to SL 
 Peter (consequently to the Pope) the power of making that 
 to be sin which is no sin, and that which is no sin to be sin.** 
 Many more such like horrible extracts might be given ; but, 
 if proof is wanting to make it more evident that Roman Ca- 
 tholics now are what they ever were, and that such sentiments 
 are maintained ; the declaration of Father Gahan, and the 
 conduct of the present Pope with Buonaparte, are quite suffi- 
 cient to convince every impartial observer. 
 
 Again— The Petitioners solemnly affirm, that " the Catho- 
 lic faith do^s not require them to believe or profess that thi 
 Pope is infallible. But, that the priests in Ireland really be- 
 lieve both the infallibility of the Pope and his Church, is 
 what I shall prove from works which they have lately pub- 
 lished. Father Gahan, on this subject, says, " Who is the 
 judge to whom Jesus Christ has communicated the gift of 
 infallibility 9 Behold here the end of all disputes, and the 
 point to which all controversies and contests about religion 
 are reduced. Behold here what renders my faith firm, cer- 
 tain, unshaken, and what dissipates all my doubts, all my 
 disquietudes, and all my perplexities. For supposing that 
 this judge is assisted by the Holy Ghost, as I shall prove in 
 the following paragraph, and that He cannot err in mat- 
 ters of faith, I have but to submit to His decisions without 
 examining whether what he has decided be right or wrong/ J*' 
 After which he observes, « It is then only to the true Church 
 of Jesus Christ, that is, to the Rom^n Catholic and Apoitolic 
 
 M 
 
 Church, that infallihity has been promised and communi- 
 cated.*' 
 
 If any thing further appears necessary to prove that the In-- 
 fallibility of the Pope, Councils, and Roman Church is be- 
 lieved, in Ireland, I would only refer to the Pastoral Address 
 of Dr. Troy (the present titular Archbishop of Dublin), on 
 the Duties of Christian Citizens, addressed to the Roman Ca- 
 tholics of the Arch- Diocese of Dublin, published in the year 
 
 1793. Thus speaks the Reverend Prelate, " We have already 
 observed, that Catholics are obliged to believe as an article of 
 faith, that the Pope, or Bishop of Rome, as successor of St 
 Peter, is the supreme head of the Church on earth, and centre 
 of Catholic unity, with a primacy by Divine Right of real 
 authority and jurisdiction in the universal Church : and that 
 all Catholics owe HIM canonical respect and obedience on 
 that account; it is likewise an article of faith, that the 
 Church of Christ is infallible in her doctrinal decisions and 
 canons on points of faith and morals, because he promised to 
 be with her unto the end of the worid. Catholics therefore 
 are obliged to adhere implicitly to such decrees and canons of 
 the Church assembled in general council, and confirmed by 
 the Pope, as to the rules of faith. They are therefore obliged, 
 in like manner, to submit to similar decisions and decrees 
 of the Pope, when expressly or tacitly assented to, or not 
 dissented from, &c. &c." Indeed the authority of the Pope 
 or Church, is declared to be above all authority on earth, 
 neither bound to the laws of nations, or the scripture of 
 truth ; as Salmeron, the Jesuit, observes in his second Prole- 
 gom, ** The Churches authority is more ancient and more 
 worthy than the authority of the scriptures." And while 
 they despise both the laws of God and man, however great a 
 friend lam to liberty of conscience, I must think that the 
 Roman Catholics of Ireland are not entitled jto emancipation, 
 while they maintain the doctrines of Popery. 
 
 One of these doctrines is, that " princes excommunicated 
 by the Pope, and Council, may be deposed or mtrdered by 
 their subjects, or by any other person ;'' but the Petitioners 
 
8# 
 
 STRONG JlEASO^iS .AaAlNSO? 
 
 HI 
 
 •^ " 
 
 « on behalf of ttemselvjes, ^nd of others ,of liis Majesty^s sub. 
 jects prolessing the Roman Catholic religion," have sworn, 
 " that this is no article of their j-ajth, au*! that they .renounce, 
 
 • • • • • * 
 
 and reject, and abjure tl)jeoF>mion*.'' ^^ 
 
 '* With respect to the Pppe\si)retensi^^^^^ to the Power of 
 deposing princes, we have so. strong, an nist;iuce.ot the ilolv 
 See's inflexibility- upon thatpohli; 'nVthe Si-:^ie ^^^<^' 
 lected by Edward Earl of Clarenddu, that I m-t^d not n^^l^e any 
 excuse to the IVotestant reader for.thi^ i^ote. vvl^ch r^'coi^^s ^^^^ 
 
 curious and remarkable a te^Umonvy ^",\^^^>>;^.'i^.^fvV:!/!c 
 Lea/2Je/-, a Benedictine Monk, obi uned leave ot Knig Uiarlts 
 
 I, by the means of Secrctaiy [♦^/-feV^a.Av an.1 und.r pr.teiicc 
 of visiting his relations, to come over trom Doz/a//.to ^"A^ ^'^/J- 
 rSee p 7-i ot ^che^e State Papei •^.] When be was got Uituei , 
 ke w^s in no haste to go back, and, as it should seem was 
 permitted to stay, upon the preteno. ot ^^"^?,f f^" ,[.^ u^ 
 Government, in procuring the Eu^lif l^.^'^^'^^^^^IV P 1 I ad 
 oath of allegiance and suprt macy to the kmg. i be Popi- iiaa 
 issued a bull, piohibitmg the Catholic subject^ oi Ln^a^tdio 
 take that oath. LcaWcr set on foot a correspondence v^^th^^^^^^^ 
 persons of power at i2o/»., particularly the Cardmais ^^^;^;:'^ '^ 
 ind Bentko^no, wherein he used divers ^l'^'^^^^^^^^^. ^^ .' ;^ 
 the expedience qf suspending the ^'f ^"^^^V ^,V^''f t • '"^ 
 mentioned bull, and, among the rest, the probabdity of bilg- 
 ing over the whole kingdom of England to ih^ Catholic lai , 
 by such a measure. He even set hansel to dtfcnd the oath, 
 and to shew, by certain qualitications ot the temis in which it 
 S expreiedf that it was not incompatlbie with theobedience 
 due fi^m a good Catholic to the Holy See. Among lus cones- 
 Jondents at'i^o..e, was one Richard Reade, Pro-rat^^ o c 
 Con-rcgation of the Benedictmes m Ly^-/a//(/, who went bv the 
 nZic^'John jyUfrd Seibge. [Seep. l^^^O^. / ^^^^ / ^/^/^ 
 or milrd, as he culls himself, had the care ot Uar^e s co - 
 respondence at Rome, and, as appears intormedhn horn 
 tme to time, how his intelligence and hrs P^opo^als were 
 received and relished by the AppstoUc Governmen, which it 
 seems was so very iuditlerently, that nUford advised Inm, tor his 
 mvn^sake, to me^ddle no more with the controversy abou the 
 oath, and having given Leandcr his reascMis ^v;^ Y ^^^^^ .^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 enjoined by the f: ,o/i.^ Government woud ^^<^t pass ^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 he savs: "Hear, therefore, some other torm ot oath ustbc 
 thought upon, whereby his Majesty may abundan l>s ad su- 
 perabunda\itly, ii' any thing can supcrabound »^^ ^his Uk^ 
 secured ot his subjects lidelity, and yet there be no entrenchmg 
 UP9^ subje.ct3 eonscience, uor the autLont!^ oftlus seat.nhich. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 95 
 
 i 
 
 ^^ 
 
 They seem to be conscious, that they would be charged with 
 holding this doctrine. But why do they say Catholics do not be-« 
 lieve it? as it may be supposed they must know, that one priest 
 hatli said. It is lawful to murder any one (though his own prince) 
 if the Pope hold him excommunicated *. And another sets 
 down rules how it may done ; and thinks poisoning the best 
 wayt. And Hospinian shews us, how the Jesuits animate 
 him whom they employ for the murdering of Kings J. 
 
 If we only read the form of the oaths prescribed by the late 
 and former Acts of Parliament, we shall there find that Pa- 
 pists, under the mask of religion, are supposed capable of th^ 
 grossest perjuries^ and most horrid murders. And if w^e look 
 into Sir Richaid Steel's Appendix, we shall see an extract 
 from the oration of Pope Sixtus the Vth, uttered in a consis* 
 tory at Rome, Sept, 2, 1571), wherein his Holiness commends, 
 as wonderful and meritorious, the execrable murder commit* 
 ted by Jaques Clement, a Jat obine friar, on Henry the Hlrd, 
 King of France ; and compares the conduct of the monk, in 
 perpetrating that horrid crime, with the conduct of Eleazar, 
 and with that of Judith, in slaying Holofernes, and prefers 
 the deed of his Catholic brother to both. 
 
 But the Petitioners, in their bold remonstrance, endeavour 
 to hide from our eyes every thing of this kind, that the na- 
 tion may more readily put them into the possession of that 
 power, which, in all ages, they have so much abused, to the 
 injury of all out of their Church. 
 
 hacing stood for her riirht so many ages, in the cause of deposing 
 Princes, will be very unwilling to permit the oath as the w^ords 
 lie, although glossed ^vith another intention. Look over the 
 oath, which usually is exhibited to the Catholics in Ireland; 
 examine other forms of oaths in Catholic countries, add to 
 them, augment them, and endeavour to form them in that 
 kind, and in those words, which may secure and content his 
 Majesty, as is most jiist and reasonable to be done; yet take' 
 heed of meddling iciik deponihility of Princes, for that article 
 will nerer pass here,"" State Papers, &c. p. 272. 
 
 * Em. Sa. t Marsana. 
 
 t Hospin, Hist, Jesuit, p. 225, and F/aue/. Tidings from Rome. 
 
 i%i 
 
96 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 97 
 
 I* 
 
 l\ 
 
 Let us only consult the history of our own country. Did 
 not Pope Pius Vth excommunicate Queen Elizabeth, and as 
 far as in him lay, deprive her 6f the allegiance of her subject* 
 by absolving them from the obligation of their oaths, and 
 anathematizing such as continued in their obedience to her 
 government ? Thus she was left to the mercy of the first 
 ruffian, who could find the means to execute the vengeance 
 of his Holiness in a more effectual manner than would 
 be done, by merely fixing the rescript to the gate of the 
 Vatican. The bull is preserved by Bishop Burnet, and by 
 the tenor of it, it appears, that as Queen Elizabeth^^ Protes- 
 tant successors have offended the Holy See in the sanie 
 articles, they must of course be liable to the same sentence 
 How far the principles on which this Bull was founded, 
 operated upon the Papists of those days, the religious desig- 
 nation of the Spanish Armada, and the frequent plots and 
 conspiracies of the good Catholics- of that reign, are indispu. 
 
 table evidence. 
 
 I shall now proceed to examine another protestation of the 
 Petitioners, " that they reject and detest as unchristian and 
 impious, to believe that it is lawful, in any ways, to injure 
 any person of pei-sons whatsoever, under pretence of their 
 being heretics ; and also that unchristian and impious principle 
 that no faith is to be kept with hereticsr 
 
 Whatever the private opinions of these Petitioners may be, 
 they are only known to God, and their own consciences. But. 
 certain it is. that the direct contrary are maintained, not only 
 
 * See Hist. Reform, vol. H. Collection of Records part 
 TT hook iii No 13, the last in the volume, b^ixtus the Vth 
 publSied";^^^^^^^ bull m 1587, by which he ga- away 
 bueen EUzabetK^ kingdoms ^o the first that should s^^^^ 
 
 them. « This, says Rapin, was the King of ^/«'^;y,*' Vh^s 
 rSy to make'an advantage of the Pope's kmdo^^^^^ ^^^ 
 kind offer was indeed implied in Pius s bull, though not so 
 e^irS^ mentioned. But the kingdom being taken from 
 
 Sfimu^t be given to somebody --^ /^^y ^^'^et 
 Scot, was just as ready to accept of it as P/ii/e/> was alter 
 
 ward^. 
 
 by the Popes but by general Councils. It is expressly 
 decreed by the fourth Lateran, that heretics shall be perse- 
 cuted even to extermination ; nay, that any potentate who 
 shall give protection to them, or refuse to assist in such exter- 
 mination, shall be involved in their fate *. In the Council of 
 Thoulouse, adopted and followed in practice by the Popes, 
 an Inquisition was established for the very purpose of dis- 
 covering heretics, and subjecting them to persecution for 
 their opinions, however privately entertained, or wholly kept 
 to themselves. In the Council of Constance, also, not only 
 John Huss and Jerome of Pi*ague were burnt, but they 
 were brought to the stake in violation of the solemn safe- 
 conduct granted by the Emperor, t Nay, to shew still further 
 the spirit of that communion, had it not been previously de- 
 termined that heretics should not be allowed any counsellor 
 to advise them ? And also, that every sort of testimony was 
 to be received against them ? Were not these decrees acted 
 upon ? And I would further ask, upon what ground, or for 
 what purpose, were the Inquisitions established, at Rome, in 
 Spain, in Portugal, and other places, but upon this doctrine 
 of Councils, that it is lawful to use every kind of force and 
 rigour, to exercise every act of cruelty against a man, simply 
 because he is supposed to be a heretic 9 Is it in this country 
 that we are to be told, tl\jit these are not doctrines of the 
 Church of Rome, where the memory of Queen Mary is still 
 held in execration, merely for her obedience to these decrees, 
 put in force, by her, under the sanction of a Pope's Legate ; 
 in consequence of which so many good and learned men were 
 
 * Fleury. B. 77. Dupin. 
 
 t That ** no faith is to be kept with heretics,'* was decreed 
 in the nineteenth Session of the Council of Constance. [See 
 Span. Eccl. Hist. p. 1845.] This maxim, therefore, having 
 been thus openly avowed, and having never been as openly 
 disclaimed, it incontestably follows, that they who admit the 
 authorltif and, particularly, the infallibility of that Council, 
 f annot be trusted by those whom they account heretics. 
 
m 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 a'HE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 99 
 
 ^i 
 
 brought to the stake, upon no other charge but a difference in 
 matters of faith ? 
 
 Yet, in order to throw the blame of persecution on the 
 Protestants, or to make them, at least, sharerii in this respect 
 with the Roman Ca^tholics^ as ^yeU as to exculpate tlie latter. 
 Dr. Milner (who is not only looked up to as a nian of emi- 
 nence, for his learning in the. Romish Church, but is actually 
 one of its Bishops) is not ashamed to tell us, first, that the 
 " execrable fires in Queen Mary's reign were lighted up by 
 the policij, not the religion of that remorseless Queen'^.'* 
 This is pretty well. But further he goes on to assure us, 
 that " it has been demonstrated that many more Catholics 
 were put to death under Elizabeth and the first Stuarts, /or 
 the mere exercise of their religion^ than all the Protestant 
 sufferers in Mary's reign f." P. 33. 
 
 Here the following observation seems worthy of notice: 
 The persecution against the Protestants in Mary's reign com- 
 prises a period of two years. To this is opposed a period of 
 near a century ; for much less than this can hardly be comprised 
 within the reign of Eliz^ibeth and only the two Jirst Stuarts* 
 Surely, this is not a statement very favourable to Di\ ^lihier, 
 upon his own shewing. But, in truth, I assert, (and every honest 
 man, acquainted with English history, will coincide in opinion 
 with mo,) that the proposition is totally unfounded. Those 
 whom he states as sufferers for their religion in Queen Eliza- 
 beth's reign, suffered for state crimes, and ior^state crimes only. 
 
 • Letter to a Member of Parliament, sold by Booker, p. 31, 
 i They who are well versed in the English annals, and 
 who are candid judges, must allow, that the Protestants in 
 Queen Elizabeth's reign, did not retaliate upon the Papists 
 for the cruelties which they had so lately suffered. A^ a 
 strong proof of this, let it be observed, that even the ferocious 
 and sanguinary Bonner himself ended his days in as much 
 (juiet as a guilty conscience would suffer him to enjoy. He- 
 lived, in truth, protected from the fury of the populace, 
 under the roof of a bishop, with every indulgence which he 
 could reasonably desire. 
 
 The Pope had, in effect, declared war against the Queen. 
 The Popish priests were considered as principally engaged 
 in his cause, and all other Papists as in some sort implicated 
 in it; in fact^ many plots and conspiracies were discovered, 
 or asserted to have been discovered, against the life of the 
 sovereign^ In consequence of this, very severe and (if you 
 will) sanguinary laws were passed against those men so con- 
 sidered; and iqjon those laws some individuals were exe- 
 cuted : not, I believe, any thing like the number mentioned ; 
 but, be they many or few^ they were executed notary heretics, 
 but as state criminals ; tried by secular judges, upon merely 
 feci^/ar grounds. Was this the case in iViariy's reign? Were 
 the Protestants exe(;uted for treasons real or supposed? 
 Were they brought before lay courts? No; they were taken 
 up, brought before ecclesiastical judges, and the question put 
 to them was not, " Have you transgressed any statute of the 
 realm ?" but, " Do you believe in transubstanttation >* Will 
 you subscribe a declaration lo that effect?" According to 
 their answer, they were cither dismissed, or imprisoned, or 
 committed to the flames. So far were they from being 
 punished for political crimes, that, in the cases of Cranraer 
 and Ridley, care was taken that no mistake should be made 
 in that respect. They had been guilty of high treason in pro- 
 claiming Lady JaiTe Gray; but they were purposely pardoned 
 and not questioned for their treason, in order tli^t they might 
 suffer for their supposed heresy. What can more clearly 
 shew the.spirit by which Ma-iy was actuated ? 
 
 But even this is nothing — for Dr. Milner had, but a page 
 before, cut the Gordian knot in a manner which not only 
 absolves the advisers and instruments of Queen Mary, but 
 renders it absolutely impossible that any ecclesiastic what-' 
 ever (Roman Catholic at least) could have been guilty of' 
 persecution. And to this I earnestly entreat the reader's at- 
 tention, because, if ever the spirit of the Romish Church was 
 manifested, it is here, it is in this passage, thus put forth in 
 the nineteenth century. 
 
100 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 "But*/* says the Doctor, " to meet the objection'* (that 
 arisingf from persecution) " more directly, I do not know any 
 other Church, except the Catholic, which h2iS formally declared 
 (3 Lateran, Can. 27, &c. t) that she has no power of infiicting 
 san^Jiinai'y punishment in any case whatever. She carries this 
 spirit so far, as to render those of her Clergy who concur 
 indirectly' (mark that) " in the shedding of blood, whether 
 in a cause of heresy, or any other cause, incapable of receiving 
 a benefcc^ or of exercising ecclesiastical functions. It is in 
 virtue of this ancient law that the bishops of the Establish- 
 ment quit their seats in the Upper House, when a capital 
 cause comes before it. Neither does the Churchy by her 
 general discipline^ require or solicit temporal Princes to put 
 heretics to death; on the contrary, she was bound 
 TO recommend them to mercy, where the laws of the 
 State used to inflict sanguinary punishments upon them." 
 So then, when a purely ecclesiastical commission, sitting 
 upon purely ecclesiastical questions, had adjudged a man 
 guilty of heresy, and delivered him over to the secular aim, 
 in full assurance, that he w^ould the next hour be brought to 
 the stake in consccjuence of that very adjudication, these 
 ecclesiastics did not €ve7i indirectly concur in the shed- 
 ding of that blood ! ! ! Bonner and Gardiner, nay the vice- 
 chancellor and convocation of the Univei*sity of Oxford had 
 no share, no, hot the most indirect participation in the deaths 
 of Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer!!! But further, they 
 could not have it, because " the Church was bound to recom-^ 
 mend them to mercy T Because, in all such cases, the 
 Ilomish Church, to the cruelty of her sentence, adds the 
 detestable hypocrisy of recommending the unfortunate 
 heretic to the mercy of the magistrate, who, under pain of 
 excommunication, is bound to execute her decrees ; therefore 
 
 * Letter c. p. 30. 
 
 t To which, however, be it remembered the 4th Laterau 
 is subsequent, and so of later and more binding authority. 
 
 the catholic claims. 
 
 101 
 
 «he does not even indirectly concur in the execution ! What 
 shall we say to such reasonin<? as this ? Is this the enlightened 
 nineteenth century, which boasts of its liberality and acute- 
 ness? Or is Dr. Milner preaching to the barbarians of the 
 dark ages ? 
 
 But, above all, I would particularly ask this Right Reverend 
 Lord Bishop, or any of liis adherents, who they are that not 
 only examine and torture heretics, in the Inquisition, but 
 " injiict sanguinary punishment upon them f Do none of 
 these '* exercise ecclesiastical functions >" Is there not a priest 
 to be found, who " concurs, even indirectly, in the shedding of 
 blood f'' Does every oi^ who appears at an auto dafe, " re- 
 commend to the mercy of teniporal princes," the miserable 
 creatures that have been condemned to sutler, by the inquisi- 
 torial tribunal, not for crimes against the State, but for pre- 
 turning to differ from the Church of Rome, and to form their 
 own notions of religion from " the scriptures of truth?" Among 
 the thousands who have been sentenced to expire in the flames, 
 how many have obtained mercy, at the recommendation of the 
 clergy? It must be unaccountably strange indeed, if several 
 of them have not been pardoned, at the compassionate inter- 
 ference of those priests, " who have the rule over" the people; 
 yea, over kings and emperors themselves. And yet I much 
 question, whether it can be said of a skigle individual, led to 
 the faggot, by order of the Inquisitors, " Is not this a brand 
 plucked out of the fire ?*' Zech. iii. 2. 
 
 If we advert now to the reign of King James IL, who be- 
 came by degrees a bigoted Pap st, we shall be the less inclined 
 to credit the assertions of the members of the Romish Church. 
 
 Bishop Burnet, in " the History of his own times," (vol. i, 
 p. 672,) informs us, " that the maxim which King James set 
 up, and about which he entertained all around him, was the 
 great happiness of an universal toleration. On this the King 
 used to enlarge in a great variety of topics. He said, nothing 
 was more reasonable, more Christian, and more politic ; and he 
 reflected much on the Church of England for the severities with 
 which the Dissenters had been treated. Tiiis, how true or just 
 
102 
 
 StRONG REASONS AGAIKST 
 
 li 
 
 h 
 
 ■m 
 
 soerer it might be, yet was strange doctrine in the mouth of-i 
 PKOFESSED PAPIST, and of a Prince, on whose account, and 
 by wliose direction, the Church-party had been indeed but 
 too obsequiously pushed on to that rigour." 
 
 If it should be asked, how King James TI., or any other 
 Papist, could reconcile these professions to doctrines aiij prac 
 tices so directly contrary to them, the same worthy Prelate 
 hath taught us, in another work, how to account for this. 
 
 " The txtiipatiMofhcrttks,^nA the breach of faith to them, 
 have been decreed by two of their general councils, and by a 
 tradition of several ages :—>-ow these opinions, as they have 
 never been renounced by the body of that Church, so nidced 
 they cannot be, unless they renounce their infallibility, which 
 is their basis, at the same time. Theref:>-e, though a Prince 
 of that communion may very sincerely resolve to maintam h- 
 berty of conscience, and to keep his word, yet tlie blind subje<> 
 tion, into which he is brought by his religion, ta his Church, 
 must force him to break through all that, as soon as the doc 
 trine of his Church is opened to him, and that absolution is 
 denied him, or higher threatenings are. made, if he continiies 
 firm to his merciful inclinations." llicfleetions on a pamphlet 
 entitled, Parliamentum Pacilicum, in the second vol. ol Bishtvp 
 
 Burnefs Tracts, 4to. p. 68.] 
 
 Hence, King James was induced, at last, to perstcnte the Pro- 
 testants, though, atjrst; (as some authors think) he was dis- 
 posed to tolerate them. Through the prevalence of bigotry, 
 therefore, he could nejUier reconcile himself, nor his priests, 
 to the slow precarious methods of bringing in Popeiy. by 
 political intrigue. His reli-ion, he thought, obliged him, and 
 his sorerei-n poicer, he imagined, authorised him, to establish his 
 own faith^ by the most open and undisguised acts of oppres- 
 sion. In these attempts he was impolitic enough to let the 
 nation see, that Poper;i teas ahcays the same, a cruel, intole- 
 rant, but, at the same time, a treacherous and hypocritical sys- 
 tem, which, to compass its ends, could put on the mask of un^ 
 limited toleration on some occasions, even while, on others, it 
 wa« breaking through . every sacred frncc of law and justice; 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 103 
 
 t 
 
 \ 
 
 I 
 
 lo plant its votaries ^^here their influence was most likely to 
 undermine the principal supports of the Protestant Religion. 
 It is no wonder that these insults ui)on the Constitution should 
 provoke a desertion of all his subjects, who valued the bless- 
 jrit^s ofreligious and civil liberty as they deserved. The con* 
 sequence was, a general invitation to the Prince of Orange to 
 undertake our deliverance, and the expulsion of the bigoted 
 violator of the laws and liberties of a free' and brave peo}>le. 
 
 As it has been often denied, that the doctrine of the Council 
 of Constance^ viz. That faith is not to he kept icith heretics^ 
 (particularly when the interests of the Church come in ques- 
 tion,) is not the doctrine of the Church of Rome, I shall now 
 subjoin the decision of Pope Clement XI., near 300 years after 
 the said Council was held, and thctt with respect to the most 
 solemn treaties made between sovereign princes. 
 . The treaties here alluded to are those of Westphalia^ Rys-^ 
 wickf Alt^Ranstadt, and Utrecht, But as it would be too tedi- 
 ous to narrate all the circumstances attending them, suiiice it 
 to say, that they related to certain stipulations concerning 
 religion, by which the Protestants (whom the Pope was pleased 
 to call heretics and an execrable sect J were allowed seYeral 
 privileges. Nevertheless his Holiness took care " to publish 
 a bull, annulling all the articles of these treaties which he 
 conceived prejudicial to the Roman Catholic Religion ;" and 
 consequently to dispense with the Roman Catholic powers, 
 who were parties to it, from fulfilling their engagements with 
 the Protestants, 
 
 This appears from a long letter w^hich he wrote to Charles 
 VI., Emperor of Germany, dated Jan. 4th, 1712.* There 
 God^s vicar general upon earth speaks thus. ** That your Ma- 
 jesty, being more substantially supported by our Apostolical 
 decision, may with niore alacrity utterly despise the before- 
 mentioned conventions, and esteem them as if they had never 
 been made; we, by these presents, denomice to your Majesty, 
 and at the sarn6 time, by the authority committed to us by 
 
 . ■ '^ ■ >■ i i I . I i I ■ ' / ' » r I , .11 I ...■■■ - ■ . . I 
 
 ' ■ '♦ Tin. Cdrttfn. vol. vi. p. -280. 
 
id4 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAXKST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 105 
 
 l\ 
 
 the most omnipotent God, declare the before-mentioned co* 
 venants of the treaty of Alt-Ranstadt. and every thing contain- 
 cd in it which are in any wise obstructive of, or hurtful to, or 
 which may be said, esteemed, pretented, or understood, to 
 occasion or to bring, or to have brought, the least prejudice to, 
 or any ways to hurt, or to have hurt, the Catholic Faith, di- 
 vine worship, the salvation of souls, the authority, junsdic 
 tion^or any rights of the Church whatsoever, together with 
 all and singular matters which have followed, or may at any 
 lime hereafter follow from them, to be, and to have been, and 
 perpetually to remain hereafter, .rfe J wre null, vain, invalid, 
 unjust, reprobated, void and evacuated of all force and effect 
 from the beginning, and that no j)er8on is bound to the obser- 
 vation of them, or any of them, although the same have been 
 repeatedly ratified or secured by an oath ; and that they nei- 
 ther could nor ought to have been, nor can or ought to be, 
 observed by any person whatsoever; and that no right, action, 
 title, colour of title, cause of possession or prescription, is or 
 hath been acquired from them, much less may be acquired or 
 accrue by any length of time -, and that they create or have 
 created no estate or quality, but that they ought for ever to 
 be accounted as if they had never issued, and as if they were 
 not extant, nor had ever been made. And nevertheless, for 
 the greater caution, aud so far as may be necessary, we disap- 
 prove, rescind, cassate, make void, annull, and totally dis- 
 charge of all force and effect, all the aforesaid covenants, and 
 all other the premises enumei-ated in these presents which are 
 prejudicial as aforesaid. Wherefore, our most dear Son in 
 ' Christ, attend, and wholly rejecting all covenants of this kind, 
 and recinding every thing which has in any manner been 
 done towards the execution of them, valiantly defend the cause 
 of the Church, of Religion, and of God." 
 
 It is clear from this letter, that, from the time of the Coun- 
 cil of Constance to the year 1712, it was the constant and in- 
 variable doctrine of the Church of Rome, that all stipulations 
 with Protestants concerning Church-mattere, that is to say, 
 which granted any religious advantaged to the Prqtestants, or 
 
 ^ 
 
 withdrew any from the Papists, were to be cgnsidered by the 
 good Catholics as ipso jure null and invalid from the beginning. 
 
 And now I call upon the modern Romanists to infoma us, 
 if they please, at what period, since 1712, the Roman Pontiff, 
 or the States of Europe in communion with him, have either 
 disowned the doctrines and maxims above-mentioned, or cor- 
 rected their practice by others of a more creditable family ? 
 If this cannot be shewn, we shall hardly believe that the good 
 faith of the individuals of that communion, where the interests 
 of the Church are concerned, is secured to the Protestants upon 
 any better grounds than a temporary dispensation, which will 
 last no longer than the Church remains in a state of inability 
 to assert her authority, and reclaim her omnipotence. And 
 nothing, I am persuaded, will satisfy the Papists but the es- 
 tablishment of their system, with all its despotic pretensions ; 
 and, to accomplish this, they ever have been, and ever will be 
 at work ; and employ all their craft and artifice for that pur- 
 pose, upon all occasions and opportunities. 
 
 I have been assured upon good authority, that none of the 
 Popish Casuists are of more esteem with the Roman Catholics 
 of this kingdom than Bellarmine, upon account of the convex 
 nience of so many of his solutions to Catholics, situated in en 
 heretical country. He is indeed their Oracle. Now, he has 
 inculcated the duty of destroying heretics in the strongest 
 terms ; and only dispenses with it in cases where the Ca- 
 tholics are too few or too weak to attempt it.* The advan- 
 tages therefore that the P rotestants give to people thus prin- 
 cipled, which may contribute either to their strength, or the 
 increase of their numbers, are just so many steps towards the 
 destruction of our Establishment. 
 
 From the history of the Polish Dissidents, also, . published 
 some years ago, we may learn, how cauteous we should be at 
 this juncture, when the Papists are soliciting an enlargement 
 of their civil and religious privileges in this country, on the 
 
 ♦ Bellarminey de Laicis, Lib. iii. cap. 22. 
 
106 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAIN«T 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 107 
 
 pretence of their being so few, when compared with the nu- 
 merous body of Protestants. We there find the Roman Ca- 
 tholics and Dissidents of Poland were once nearly equal as to 
 numbers. We are there informed of the stipulations between 
 the two parties, and by what solemn decisions their civil and 
 rdigious rights were secured to the Dissidents upon various oc- 
 casions; but all to no purpose, when they who called them- 
 selves Catholics had increased their numbers, and had got the 
 power into their hands. The maxim that no faith is to be kept 
 tcith heretics, was never more visibly nor canonicaUy executed, 
 from the time that it had the sacred sanction of the Council of 
 Constance. No artifice, no injustice, no violence was omitted, 
 whereby the Dissidents might be dispossessed of their churches, 
 and restrained in the exercise of their religion. And what has 
 happened in the course of the late struggles, by which the Dis- 
 sidients have endeavoured to reinstate themselves in their na- 
 tural and legal rights and privileges, makes it evident to demon- 
 stration, that THE SPIRIT OF PoPERY IS STILL THE SAME, 
 
 irreconcileable in its hatred and enmity to all dissenters from 
 it; bigoted to the most abject superstitions of the darkest 
 ages, and determined against every degree of toleration, 
 wherever it has the power to enforce its sanguinar^^ decrees 
 against those whom it thinks ht to stigmatize with the name 
 of heretics. 
 
 But why need we have recourse to foroign nations for a 
 proof of this? — Our own histories abundantly testify, that 
 where the Papists have been invested with civil authority, they 
 have always dealt perfidiously with heretics, or, in other 
 words, with Protestants. Does not this appear, by the breach 
 of the Edict of Nantes against the faith of the most solemn 
 treaties — by the massacres in Paris and Ireland, in which no 
 ties of nature or friendship could prevent the staining their 
 hands with the blood of their nearest Protestant relations? 
 How many plots and conspiracies have been entered into 
 against the reformed religion in England; particularly that 
 wherein the Lords and Commons, assembled in Parliament, 
 
 were to be blown up at once?* And let it be observed, that 
 all the conspirators were absolved ; and that Garnet, their pro.- 
 vincial, who performed the office, was commended by Bel- 
 larmine, as a man of incomparable sanctity. 
 
 Should it still be said, that " the present race of Catholict 
 are quite different from their fore-fathei-s,*' then I appeal to a 
 book published by the reverend father Gahan, about the time 
 of the breaking out of the rebellion, on the 23d of July, 1803. 
 It is called " A short and easy method to discern the true reli* 
 giony from all the different sects ichich assume that name unde- 
 servedly'^ This popular priest is well known in Ireland, on 
 account of his attending Lord Dunboyne on his death-bed, and 
 refusing to answer the questions put to him in a court of jus- 
 tice, relative to his lordship's property. And his character is 
 too much respected by the Catholics, to lead any one to sup- 
 pose, that the sentiments he has left on record are opposite to 
 theirs. He assures us again and again, that the Church of 
 Rome is the same now, that she always was — that she now 
 maintains every tenet that ever has been maintained by his 
 Church — that she cannot eiT — and that no other Church can 
 be the true Church, &c. Having declared in page 50, " we 
 are obliged to believe that the Roman Catholic and apostolic 
 religion is the only true religion that God hath revealed to 
 mankind,** he asserts that there is no salvation out of this 
 Church, and proceeds to prove that all Protestants are heretics. 
 
 * The horror which this infernal plot excited, induced our 
 ecclesiastical rulers to compose ** a form of prayer, with 
 thanksgiving, to be used yearly upon the iifth day of Novem- 
 ber, for the happy deliverance of King James I., and the three 
 estates of England, from the most traitorous and bloody-in- 
 tended massacre by gunpowder:" And, to perpetuate the 
 memory of this flagitious conspiracy, the service ordered for 
 the occasion is still continued, wherein all Protestants give 
 God their " unfeigned thanks and praise for preserving our 
 gracious Sovereign, the Queen, the Prince, and all the royal 
 branches, with the nobility, clergy, and commons of England, 
 then assembled in Parliament, by JPopish treachery appointed 
 as sheep to be slain, in a most barbarous and savage manner, 
 beyond the examples of former ages." 
 
 H 2 
 
108 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 " How Strongly," says he in page 78, " does all this militate 
 against the sectaries of our days. For since the time of the 
 apostles until the days of Luther and Galvin, all those were 
 held HERETICS, who would not submit to the decisions of the 
 Church established under the. Roman Pontiff and the 
 bishops." And then to make evident these heretics^ he adds, 
 " the Lutherans and the Calvinists were unwilling to submit to 
 the decisions of the Council of Trent. Can they be looked 
 upon in any other light than the rest? What difference can 
 they assign between themselves and their predecessors ?" &c. 
 Thus all the reformed churches are pronounced heretical, by 
 this liberal, loyal Irish Catholic priest. — Let history inform us 
 of the efl'ects that have followed the belief of such a doctrine ; 
 and how many have been burnt and slaughtered for the good 
 of the Church, and then let us consider if it will be safe, or 
 wise, to invest them with more power, or to put into their 
 hands a sword to slay us. Indeed, what mu»t we expect, 
 after the priest follows up his remark in the next page, by 
 observing, that out of two hundred sects, "scarce any remainf 
 of these sects are now to be found : can the new sects, which, 
 by a judgment of God, are still suffered to exist, expect any 
 better fate hereafter ? " 
 
 That the heretics to which this Father alludes are no little 
 insignificant sect, unsupported by a nation, is evident, although 
 ht jesuitically calls them sectaries^ for, in page 53, he observes, 
 •* upwards of two hundred heretical sects have attacked the 
 Roman Catholic Church ; and not to go too far back to the 
 remote ages, nor to make mention of the unhappy schisms 
 which have taken place ; what has not been done by the tivg 
 last heresies, so formidable by the great number of their fol- 
 lowers, and supported by so many sovereign powers ? Have 
 they not employed, for the space of one hundred years, Ji re an4 
 sword to exterminate the Catholics, and to overthrow the Church 
 of Rome f " [What an arrant falsehood !] And in page 34, 
 to draw a line between the Church of Rome and the Frotestants, 
 he remarks, " the other religions have been established and 
 are supported, by the aid of libertines, and of factious men: 
 
 THE catholic CLAIMS. 
 
 100 
 
 by the/orce of arms ; by severe penalties ; by temporal rewards, 
 &c" A pretty compliment from a Catholic priest to a Protest 
 ant nation ! Is this a suitable return for the toleration enjoyed, 
 or sentiments likely to facilitate emancipation? Gracious 
 heaven ! What have we to expect from such men, were they 
 ever to get the dominion over us ? 
 
 From the contenU of this section, it is manifest, that Papists 
 own a foreign head as supreme, who can dispense with the most 
 sacred oaths, and, consequently, that no confidence can be 
 put in them. We see, also, that they have violated, in times 
 past, their most solemnly pledged faith ; that they have not 
 only alarmed us with massacres, rebellion, and treason, but 
 have actually filled our land with blood. And shall we now, 
 out of love to Popery, endanger the safety both of our Church 
 and State? What meritorious actions of the Papists entitle 
 them to the favours they demand ? 
 
 Let me not, however, be misunderstood. I am a stre- 
 nuous advocate for liberty of conscience, and insist, that a 
 Roman Catholic should enjoy his opinions in religion, as well 
 as another. But if any man's opinions are destructive to the 
 peace and happiness of society, though he may plead that they 
 are articles of his creed, yet neither law nor equity can sanction 
 toleration or licence in such a case, much less emancipation. 
 The grant of this would beti-ay the greatest folly and mental 
 infatuation. 
 
 SECTION VIL 
 
 Roman Catholics not to be admitted to any share in the Govern- 
 ment, L Because they cannot swear complete allegiance to 
 the King, whose, supremacy they consider as an usurpation 
 upon a foreign Potentate, to whom they are bound to submit--^ 
 2i Because 'this substraction of their allegiance to their tern* 
 poral Prince, and their obedience to the spiritual power oj 
 
i, 
 II « 
 
 t ■■ 
 
 110 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 Ill 
 
 the Pope, has been confirmed by long and uniform experience 
 — ^. Because the most dangerous and extravagant pretensions 
 have always been acted upon by the Popes, and are not, to 
 this day, officially disclaimed, but maintained in their full 
 extent, by the Popish clergy in Ireland — 4. Because their re- 
 Ugious principles, so very different from those of the ProteS' 
 tants, must render them unfriendly, if not decidedly inimical 
 to our Church-establishment, which, consequently, may be 
 ' subverted, if they become the stronger party in the State — 5. 
 Because it would be nugatory and incongruous to refuse to 
 the King himself, the liberty of professing the Romish re* 
 ligion, or even of marrying a Papist, should he be allowed the 
 choice, or exposed to the hazard, of being advised, and of 
 transacti?ig the affairs of Government, through the medium of 
 Popish Ministers and Counsellors. Therefore, 6. The 
 prayer of the Petition involves, in its consequences, the substi- 
 tution of the Pope's supremacy for that of his Majesty's, the 
 repeal of the Act of Settlement, /z/zrf the two Acts of Union; 
 and finally, the overthrow of the whole Constitution. 
 
 In considering the purport and objects of the Roman Ca- 
 tholic Petition, it is well worthy of remark, that the whole 
 bears a strong resemblance to the memorable declaration of 
 James the Second, in 1687, for liberty of conscience. There 
 are, in both instruments, the same plausible professions of 
 anxiety to conciliate and unite all religious persuasions — the 
 same gracious promises to respect the property of the Estab- 
 lished Church — the same appeals to the interests of trade, 
 which always vibrate forcibly on a British ear — the same dis- 
 play of a generous earnestness to open eveiy avenue of lega- 
 lized ambition — and all this as a prologue to the demand of a 
 full and equal participation of power, and of the means of ac- 
 quiring power. Now, let it be recollected that this declara- 
 tion was soon followed by another, which notified that Papists 
 had been appointed to all the principal offices of the State, and 
 recommended to the people to send Papist Representatives 
 to the new Parliament. 
 
 I ^ 
 
 I 
 
 From the epoch of that inauspicious precedent in 1687, to 
 the aeraof French fraternity, and Irish rebellion in 1798, the 
 notions of an equality of political power had been suffered to 
 lie dormant During the greater part of that long period, the 
 Irish Catholics had been subjected to a, system of intolerance 
 and restraints, perhaps too severe to be defended, except on 
 grounds of necessity. 
 
 The lirst measure of any extent in favour of the Irish Ca- 
 tholics was in 1778. They were then empowered to take 
 long leases, and were relieved from various incapacities, af- 
 fecting both their properties and persons. The next material 
 act for their benefit was in 1781 ; which, in addition to various 
 indulgences contained in it, enables Papists to purchase and 
 to hold estates, with the exception of advowsons. Hereby 
 the Irish Catholics had an interest in the soil, and, conse- 
 quently, a more immediate attachment to the welfare of the 
 community. But the jargon of emancipation was then un- 
 known — the aera of modern illumination was not yet arrived — 
 that aera when it would be thought safe and practicable to 
 maintain the limited monarchy, and Established Church of 
 England without test-laws, and without any restraint or inca- 
 pacities, affecting any description of sectarists. 
 
 The next and last concessions of any importance, were 
 those which took place in 1792 and 1793. Lord Grenville, 
 who opened the debate in the House of Lords, had been 
 pleased to sa}^ that all the framers and supporters of these 
 measures must reflect on them with pride and satisfaction — 
 Lord Buckinghamshire had expressed a similar sentiment : 
 and certainly, it was an amiable and natural weakness in pa' 
 rents to speak with rapture and, admiration of very depraved 
 and ugly children. But for my part, I have always contem- 
 plated the abrupt and improvident concessions of 1793 with 
 dissent and regret, as many others have done. For, those 
 concessions placed the Protestants of Ireland in a relative 
 situation, which impressed on every observing mind, the ur- 
 gent necessity of a legislative union of the two kingdoms ; 
 and yet they tended to increase the dilliculties of a measure, 
 
113 
 
 STROKQ REASOKS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 113 
 
 f 
 
 '- 
 
 which thua became essential to the peace and safety of the 
 empire. Great as those concessions were, they only served to 
 •timulate the appetite of the Irish Cathohcs for further 
 claims ; and, in 1795, the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (Earl 
 Fitzwilliam) shewed a strong disposition to gratiiy them to 
 the full extent of their wishes. Happily he was not supported 
 by the Government of that day, though it was composed of 
 the same individuals, who now inconsistently urge the same 
 measure for which they recalled the noble earl from his vice- 
 royalty. The career of concessions to the Catholics was soon 
 afterwards interrupted by the rebellion, (the honors of which 
 are too shocking for memory to dwell on,) and aftenvards by 
 the discussions and arrangements which eventually accom- 
 plished the union of the two kingdoms. In the result, a pe- 
 riod of comparative tranquillity had been attained ; and now 
 the Roman Catholics and their advisers are earnesUy urging 
 the most unreasonable demands. 
 
 The professed object of the Petition is, to procure what is 
 called " Cathohc Emancipation." That term, however, is 
 very improperly applied ; for there \s no slavery from which 
 they are to be released. All that toleration can require, in 
 respect to civil and religious immunities, has been satisfied, 
 in its most enlarged ^extent. From the pressure of many ri- 
 gorous restraints, penalties, and disabilities, with which they 
 were encumbered and weighed down, they have been deli- 
 vered, under the gracious and beneficent reign of his present 
 Majesty. By several successive statutes, they have been 
 efifectually emancipated from these burdens : so that they are 
 now as free as the Protestants, in the acquisition, the enjoy- 
 ment, and the disposal of property, of every species. They 
 ' can purchase lands, settle their esUtes, and reap all the pro- 
 fits of commercial industry, equally with others of his Ma- 
 jesty's subjects ; and, in the education of their children, and 
 the choice of their marriages, they are equally unrestrained. 
 The avenues to emolument and eminence, in the practice 
 and profession of the law, are as open to them as to all 
 others. They have the same right with Protestants to serve 
 
 on grand and petty juries, and upon all inquests civil and 
 criminal. The right also -of voting in counties for meiabers 
 of parliament has been conferred on them; a capaciiy to bt- 
 come justices of the peace is capable of being communicated 
 to them, by his Majesty's commission of the peace, in the 
 same manner as it is to other subjects ; that is, of course, 
 under the check and control of a sound discretioa to be exer- 
 cised on the patt of the person holding the great seal, as to 
 the objects to whicii it should be granted. All military and 
 naval commissions, except those of principal command, and 
 all offices, except a very tew of the great ollices of state, 
 and the higher judicial offices, are attainable by them. 
 
 The enjoyment of their religious ordinances is likewise 
 equally free and public. They are at full liberty to meet 
 together in their churches and chapels, and worship our com- 
 mon Lord, agreeably to their own rites and usages. Unmc- 
 lested, they may invoke the Virgin Mary, and even angels 
 and saints. They may say masses for the dead, and strive 
 to rescue souls out of their fancied purgatory, by their pray- 
 ers. They may bow down to a consecrated wafer, or piece 
 of bread, and adore a silver crucifix, or image of our Saviour. 
 This, therefore, is not the liberty they want; for they are 
 already in complete possession of it. Nay, I will go farther, 
 and say, that if the Roman Catholics in Ireland labour under 
 any real grievances, then Protestant Dissenters in England 
 labour under more. The Romish priests may marry> and 
 can perform any act of worship, without a bishop's licence : 
 but not so the Protestant Dissenter in England. What excel- 
 lency is there in Popery, to entitle them to still greater 
 toleration ? And again I would ask, how they have nsed the 
 power they enjoy, and what Roman Catholic country gives to 
 Protestants half the privileges they now have ? 
 
 If, in the beginning of the year 1778,° any person had ven- 
 tured to predict to them, that such would, in- the course of a 
 very few years, be the condition of a people then kept under 
 the restraints, penalties, and disabilities, I have alluded to, he 
 would have been regarded as a rash and hardy utterer of a 
 
114 
 
 SJROXG KEASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS, 
 
 115 
 
 I 
 
 vain prophecy, which had not the remotest chance of ever 
 being accomplished. However, in the compass of fifteen 
 years, by the gradual removal of these restraints, they have^ 
 attained the accomplishment of all which, in their relative 
 situation to the Establishments of the country, they can con- 
 sistently ask, or the members of Parliament can, with due 
 regard to their situation, as trustees for them and others, con- 
 sistently bestow. 
 
 They have no grievances now to endure, which do not 
 equally affect many other descriptions of British subjects. /«- 
 capacities are not unknown to Protestants, The Constitution 
 demand oaths, tests, and qvalijications of all kinds. Our li- 
 berty is sustained by a system of checks. The elective franchise 
 is limited; the representative must shew his gualijication ; the 
 Dissenter must conform to the oaths ; the eldest sons of the 
 peers of Scotland cannot be retunied as representatives in 
 parliament for that part of the kingdom ; and, in short, no 
 penalty now remains on the Roman Catholics which does not 
 attach equally to other descriptions. Nay, the Roman Ca- 
 tholics of Ireland have more licence in the oath they are to 
 take than Dissenters here ; they are only to swear allegiance 
 to the King and his family ; but here the oath is to the King 
 and his family being Protestants, 
 
 When a Scotchman seeks any of the high offices in the 
 State, he is obliged to conform to the Church of England, and 
 satisfy the test-act. But this the Catholics refuse ; and yet, 
 forsooth, desire the exclusive privilege of possessing a share 
 of all the honours which Government can confer without any 
 test. 
 
 In my opinion, sufficient reflection has not been bestowed on 
 the value of what the Catholics now possess or enjoy by conni- 
 vance. Nor are they friends to the Catholics, who speak of 
 their being driven to despair, and of their groaning under 
 long and endless oppression. Imagination often creates more 
 sense of suffering, than does reality of cause ; and we are fre- 
 quently led to suppose ourselves objects of pity or disregard, 
 by the mistaken or officious suggestions of pretended sympa- 
 
 
 \ 
 
 ^ 
 
 thy. If we for a moment appreciate the real case as it is, 
 we shall find that no penalties or restrictions remain which 
 can be felt by the great mass of that people: and that not 
 the gi-ant of all which is required, would add a grain to their 
 real wants or wishes : and in respect of the few who might be 
 objects of supposed benefit by further indulgences, they are 
 excluded only iYom certain situations by necessary regard for 
 our constitutional establishment, and from which, in fact, they 
 exclude themselves by refusal to aspire to them upon equal 
 conditions with their Protestant fellow-subjects. 
 
 The laws which enjoin the taking the oatii of supremacy 
 are not restrictive nor exclusive laws, in respect to any class of 
 people in the community, except to traitors, because it is 
 merely an oath of allegiance to the State. No subject, re- 
 fusing it, should be admitted to the functions of a legislator, 
 nor to any place of trust and power in the State. To use the 
 words of the prime minister, in the debate in 1790, on the 
 attempt to repeal the test and corporation acts, " Persons pro- 
 fessing modes of belief, which endanger the welfare of the 
 society of which they are members, should be excluded from 
 possessing the authority of the State ; and here such line of 
 exclusion should be drawn ♦." The Romanists in the British 
 empire (but particularly in Ireland) enjoy a complete tole- 
 ration and liberty of conscience. To use again the words of 
 the same great minister, on the same occasion, ** Tolei*ation 
 consists in a free exercise of religion, according to the tenets 
 of the professors of that religion, and in the enjoyment of the 
 protection of the laws ; not in a communication of an equality 
 of political power f,** 
 
 Yet, this equality the Roman Catholics boldly claim. Ac- 
 cordingly, the substance of their Petition has been com- 
 pressed into one short, but pregnant sentence: "an equal 
 participation on equal terms of the full bene (its of the British 
 laws and Constitution.'* Had I been at liberty to understand 
 
 ♦ Historical Register, 1790, p. 14, TVIr. Pitt's speech. 
 t Parliamentary Debates, vol. xxvii. p. 209. 
 
 31 
 
116 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS* 
 
 117 
 
 mi f 
 
 the sentence, according to the ordinary acceptation of the 
 words, I might have ansu^ered, that such participation they 
 already enjoy: but the framers of the Petition, who are 
 doubtless the best commentators of their own work, will not 
 sufiier me so to interpret them. Equal participation on equal 
 terms in their language, signifies, admission to places of 
 power and trust, without giving that security for the due dis- 
 charge of them, which is demanded of every member of both 
 Houses, and every other subject of the realm. The object of 
 the Petition, though couched in very decent and moderate 
 terms, is nevertheless of great size and importance. It is no 
 less than a request on the part of the Roman Catholics, to le- 
 gislate for a Protestant country ; to dispense the laws, to com- 
 mand the armies and navies, and to take share in the execu- 
 tive Councils of a Protestant kingdom : a request which 
 strikes at the principles of the Revolution, and, by plain, 
 broad, and inevitable consequence, calls into question the 
 justice and policy of the Act of Settlement. What, then, is the 
 real object of the Petition ? Power ! political power ! This 
 is all that remains for the legislature to give, or for them to 
 demand. 
 
 When this matter was debated in Parliament, it was ad- 
 mitted by those who espoused the Catholic cause, that the 
 Petition was not grounded on any claim of right, on any prin- 
 ciple of toleration, or any compact, express or implied, at 
 the time of the Union. It resolves itself, therefore, into a 
 question of expediency. In arguing that question, I shall not 
 cling with a blind attachment to the acts and system of former 
 ages, though sanctioned by the settlement in favour of the 
 House of Brunswick, and by the blessings resulting from it. 
 I am well aware, that the objects and principles of legislation 
 must change with the change of times, and must accommo- 
 date themselves to the interests and exigencies of the day; 
 but not a single doubt rests in my mind, that the exclusion 
 of the Roman Catholics from political power, contributeg 
 essentially to our free and happy Constitution, and ought 
 still to be maintained, for its continued security. The sta- 
 
 bility of the Protestant Church, and of that mild and true 
 religion, which, by its precepts and influence, is so incorpo- 
 rated with the State, that they must stand or fall together, 
 should be the settled principle of every pious and loyal mind. 
 If we admit the Roman Catholics to a full participation of all 
 corporate franchises within the empire, and of all oificial, 
 judicial, and legislative powers, we admit the enemy within 
 our camp. It is a desire implanted in the human breast, lor 
 men to extend the predominance of that religion which they 
 believe ; nay more, it is the sacred and prescribed duty of the 
 Papist (if he be sincere in his creed) to undermine our 
 Church Establishment — for he believes it to be fatal to the 
 souls of all who belong to it — he must feel that, in demolish- 
 ing our Constitution in Church and State, he is rendering a 
 service to his fellow-creatures, and to God. It is a fundamen-. 
 tal principle of the Church of Rome, to exercise spiritual 
 dominion over the Christian world. The titular bishops, at 
 their ordination, swear " to defend, enlarge, and extend the 
 authority of the Roman Church and of their Lord the Pope." 
 Their metropolitans in Ireland avow the same obligation, and 
 proclaim, at this hour, in their publications, that the spiritual 
 power of the Pope is the same as ever. These doctrines are 
 industriously enforced by the priests, on the minds of their 
 parishioners. We must not persuade ourselves that religion 
 is similar to the ordinances of human institution, and capable 
 of being qualified and restrained in its energies by law. The 
 Roman Catholics are bigots to religion; its principles are 
 irreconcilable to other persuasions, and its hierarchy is inces- 
 santly and indefatigably active, and subject also to the occa- 
 sional influence of foreign States. 
 
 If the sect thus described, should become co-ordinate in 
 power with the reformed religion of the British empire; if we 
 once admit the theoretical solecism of a Protestant monarch 
 and Papist Councils; we shall find ourselves in the predica- 
 ment which the author of ** The Pursuits of Literature** em- 
 phatically calls a religious anarchy. 
 
 The Church and the State are necessarily connected, each 
 
118 
 
 STRONG REAiON3 AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIM?. 
 
 119 
 
 ■'!( 
 
 giving support to the other. Roman Catholics, hostile to the 
 one, cannot have the same attachment to the other, as Pro- 
 testants have, vsrhose tenets are so far from being hostile to 
 either, that they are favourahh to both. Notwithstanding 
 that the King must not only he, but must always have been a 
 Protestant, were his advisers (upon whose judgment he is 
 to act) to possess principles not congenial with those of the 
 State, the Constitution must gradually (and the more dan- 
 gerously, because perhaps imperceptibly) be impaired. In 
 this comitry, tests were adopted gradually, and in succession, 
 with great and progressive caution, 1st, as to corpoi-ation- 
 offices, then as to oHices held under Government, then as to 
 both Houses of Parliament, and then as to the Throne, each 
 successive regulation being adopted from conviction that it 
 was a necessary addition to the then existing regulations. 
 At once, therefore, to annul ail those regulations would be a 
 most perilous experiment, especially as it would prodigiously 
 strengthen the hands of a party, which we have every reason 
 to believe are enemies both to our civil and religious Estab- 
 lishment. 
 
 Some modern philosophers, indeed, and modern orators, 
 affect to make light of those constitutional guards, though 
 their ancestors highly valued them; and what is more, both 
 King and Queen swore, at their coronation, that they would 
 inviolably maintain them. For my part, I can never bring 
 ray mind to that levelling liberality, which would consider 
 the reformed Church of Scotland, the bigoted Church of 
 Rome, and all the sectarist bodies within the British Empire, 
 as entitled, in justice and expediency, to the same political 
 privileges, powers, and functions, with the episcopal Protes- 
 tant Church. 
 
 We have seen, within a short space of time, many awful 
 warnings of the visitations of Providence in the fall of states 
 and kingdoms, and in the vicissitudes of human affairs. If 
 those calamities can be traced to innovations in civil govern- 
 ment, and to indifference respecting reiioious establishments, 
 have we not good cause to adhere to a system of which we 
 
 have had a long and beneficial experience ? Let us keep in 
 mind that we have more to risk than any nation under heaven 
 — let us recollect the object of the present long and perilous 
 war ; a war already of nineteen years duration, for it can hard- 
 ly be said to have been suspended by the treaty of Amiens. 
 Is it not a war against the spirit of innovation and of change, 
 to which so large a part of Europe has fallen a victim ? And, 
 did it not commence for the safety of our civil and religious 
 Constitution ? So long as the ancient fences of that Consti- 
 tution shall be preserved, I am confident that we have 
 nothing essential to dread ; and yet I am not blind to the 
 increasing dangers and protracted diificulties which still 
 press upon us. 
 
 There was a time when it was held that the fundamental 
 laws of civil society must rest upon a religious establishment; 
 now, however, it is asserted, that the established religion 
 ought to have no peculiar protection; and at other times, 
 though the propriety of a peculiar protection is admitted, it 
 is at the same time gravely contended, that this protection 
 might very well be entrusted to persons of a different faith — 
 that Catholic chancellors, Catholic judges. Catholic counsel- 
 lors, and Catholic legislators, might be faithful guardians of 
 the Established Church : but if the Catholics be true to 
 their own principles, I cannot help saying, that to entrust 
 them with such power, would tend to the utter extinction of 
 the Protestant Establishment. When I look at the genius of 
 the Catholic religion — the exclusive spirit which unavoidably 
 pervades it — when I look at its general doctrines — that salva- 
 tion is not to be had out of the pale of the Catholic Church, 
 I cannot but be alarmed at admitting them to be guardians 
 of a Protestant Establishment. The fact that the Presby- 
 terians of the Church of Scotland, are admitted to the highest 
 otfices in the country, has no bearing on the question. They 
 may be very safely trusted ; for there is a principle of union 
 among the Protestant sects in all their varieties ; w hereas the 
 Catholics, if they hold the sentimenfs ascribed to them by 
 their most approved authors, must be anxious for the des- 
 
120 
 
 STllONG REASONS AGAIWST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 121 
 
 ¥..^ 
 
 1-- 
 
 i"*'! 
 
 f> 
 
 truction of the Protestant Religion. The question then 
 comes to this,--whether, for the purposes of civil govern- 
 ment, one religion is not as good as another ; or whether, if 
 one be more proper than another, the protection of that one 
 ought to be entrusted to those who must necessarily be 
 anxious for its destruction, or confided to those only who are 
 interested in its presei-vation. Both in a religious and a po- 
 litical view, historical reflection will recall many events, the 
 contemplation of which cannot be favourable to the Catholic 
 Claims. It is easy to compose declamations on shewy 
 theoratical principles, but it is not so easy to give them a 
 safe practical operation. 1 would advise every man to reflect 
 on the history of the past, and then to say, how far it may be 
 prudent to give an accession of power to the Catholics ; or 
 even to relax the securities of the established religion. 
 
 It is not possible. I think, to stop at the proposed con- 
 cessions, enormous as they are : if it were admitted that the 
 two religions shall be co-extensive in civil privileges, the 
 establishment of Uie Protestant Church becomes, from that 
 moment, a public wrong. The Petitioners are pleased to 
 assure us, that they " do not seek to encroach upon the 
 revenues or possessions appertaining to our bishops and 
 clergy." Nothing is so false in principle, or in practice, as 
 the notion of giving much, that nothing more may be asked— 
 
 " The cruel something unpossess'd 
 Corrodes and leavens all the rest." 
 
 Some think, or pretend to think, that the Petitioners are 
 sincere in their professions, yet it is idle and vain to take the 
 sentiments of the great body of the Catholics from a few 
 individuals, who can only answer for themselves; and even 
 these cannot positively say, what their sentiments and con- 
 duct might be under ditterent circumstances. They might 
 fairly and honestly, and with the best intenUons in the 
 world, pursue a line of conduct which might ultimately be 
 attended with the most calamitous consequences to the 
 country. I would not. therefore, place them in a situation. 
 
 where their conduct, though perfectly well intended, on their 
 part, might be productive of such baneful eft'ects. 
 
 Surely, eveiy man who maturely considers the main 
 design of the Petition, and seriously weighs the consequences 
 which would be likely to ensue from the grant of it, will 
 immediately resolve to oppose it with all his might. 
 
 The Petition prays, that all statutes now in force against 
 Romanists (that is, all statutes requiring them to take tests as 
 qualifications for oifices, and seats in Parliament) may be 
 repealed, and they may be restored to the full enjoyment of 
 the benefits of the British Constitution, equally and in com- 
 mon with their fellow-subjects, throughout the British em- 
 pire: — this they claim too as matter of justice dind public 
 utility. Now it is very remarkable, that this measure thus 
 demanded, upon the grounds of justice and public utility, 
 is the very measure which King James II. attempted to force 
 upon the nation, and for which he forfeited the crown handed 
 down to him by a long and illustrious line of ancestors ; and 
 that the reasons given by him for his attempt, are the very 
 same reasons pleaded by the Petitioner?, and their advocates 
 for the justice of their demands ; to vAt, " that it would 
 cause and promote a brotherhood of aflections, and a conci- 
 liation of religious diti'erences, and render the nation happy 
 at home, and formidable to foreign nations." See his decla- 
 ration for general liberty of conscience, the letter left upon 
 Iiis table previous to his flight to France, and his speech to 
 his pretended Popish Parliament in Ireland, after his abdica- 
 tion. If his attempt were just, and the measure for the 
 public beneiit, it follows that he was unjustly dethroned ; and 
 the direct consequence of that is, that his present Majesty *s 
 title to the throne is an ujijust one. Let the reader determine 
 whether such doctrine is or is liot consistent with lojfaltij. 
 
 Though it may be allowed, that the dangers thus described 
 are not ijnmincnt, still they are not chimerical — they are at 
 least such, as to make it our duty to nraintainthe bulwarks 
 which we possess. The bars and bolts of a house may be 
 jemov^d, and the houtsc may possibly nut be pillaged; but 
 
 I 
 
120 
 
 STAOHG REASONS AGAIKST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 121 
 
 t 
 
 , .? 
 
 4 jl 
 
 mi' 
 
 m 
 
 -Mil 
 
 truction of the Protestant Religion. The question then 
 comes to this,— whether, for the purposes of civil govern- 
 ment, one religion is not as good as another ; or whether, if 
 one be more proper than another, the protection of that one 
 ought to be entrusted to those who must necessarily be 
 anxious for its destruction, or confided to those only who are 
 interested in its presei-vation. Both in a religious and a po- 
 litical view, historical reflection will recall many events, the 
 contemplation of which cannot be favourable to the Catholic 
 Claims. It is easy to compose declamations on shewy 
 theoratical principles, but it is not so easy to give them a 
 safe practical operation. I would advise every man to reflect 
 on the history of the past, and then to say, how far it may be 
 prudent to give an accession of power to the Catholics ; or 
 even to relax the securities of the established religion. 
 
 It is not possible, I think, to stop at the proposed con- 
 cessions, enormous as they are : if it were admitted that the 
 two religions shall be co-extensive in civil privileges, the 
 establishment of Uie Protestant Church becomes, from that 
 moment, a public wrong. The Petitioners are pleased to 
 assure us, that they " do not seek to encroach upon the 
 revenues or possessions appertaining to our bishops and 
 clergy." Nothing is so false in principle, or in practice, as 
 the notion of giving much, that nothing more may be asked— 
 
 " The cruel something unpossess'd 
 Corrodes and leavens all the rest." 
 
 Some think, or pretend to think, that the Petitioners are 
 sincere in their professions, yet it is idle and vain to take the 
 sentiments of the great body of the CaUiolics from a few 
 individuals, who can only answer for themselves; and even 
 these cannot positively say, what their sentimente and con- 
 duct might be under difterent circumstances. They might 
 fairly and honestly, and with the best intentions in the 
 world, pursue a line of conduct which might ultimately be 
 attended with the most calamitous consequences to the 
 country. I would not, therefore, place them in a aituaUon, 
 
 where their conduct, though perfectly well intended, on their 
 part, might be productive of such baneful eftects. 
 
 Surely, eveiy man who maturely considers the main 
 design of the Petition, and seriously weighs the consequences 
 which would be likely to ensue from the giant of it, will 
 immediately resolve to oppose it with all his might 
 
 The Petition prays, that all statutes now in force against 
 Romanists (that is, all statutes requiring them to take tests as 
 qualilications for oihces, and seats in Parliament) may be 
 repealed, and they may be restored to the full enjoyment of 
 the benetits of the British Constitution, equally and in com- 
 mon with their fellow-subjects, throughout the British em- 
 pire: — this they claim too as matter of justice d.nd public 
 utility. Now it is very remarkable, that this measure thus 
 demanded, upon the grounds of justice and public utiUty, 
 is the very measure which King James II. atteijipted to force 
 upon the nation, and for which he forfeited the crown handed 
 down to him by a long and illustrious line of ancestors; and 
 that the reasons given by him for his attempt, are the very 
 same reasons pleaded by the Petitioner?, and their advocates 
 for the justice of their demands ; to wit, " that it would 
 cause and promote a brotherhood of aftections, and a conci- 
 liation of religious diiierences, and render the nation happy 
 at home, and formidable to foreign nations." See his decla- 
 ration for general liberty of conscience, the letter left upon 
 his table previous to his flight to France, and his speech to 
 his pretended Popish Parliament in Ireland, after his abdica- 
 tion. If his attempt were just, and the measure for the 
 public beneiit, it follows that he was unjustly dethroned ; and 
 the direct consequence of that is, tliat his present Majesty^s 
 title to the throne is an unjust one. Let the reader determine 
 whether such doctrine is or is not consistent with loifalty. 
 
 Though it may be allowed, that the dangers thus deseribed 
 are not imminent, still they are not chimerical — tiiey are at 
 least such, as to make it our duty to maintain the bulwarks 
 which we possess. The bars and bolts of a house may be 
 jemov^d, and the house, may possibly not be pillaged ; but 
 
 , 
 
122 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIM9. 
 
 133 
 
 
 t : 
 
 
 no prudent man will ever throw them away. May God " teach 
 our Senators wisdom," that they may see it would be a 
 breach of their parhamenlaiy trust, to destroy or abandon tlie 
 great outworks of that Constitution, under which we have to 
 long enjoyed such unparalleled blessings ! 
 
 Feeling, as I do, the risk attendant on the proposed con- 
 cessions, 1 earnestly deprecate the grant, and trust that 
 Parliament will never comply, unless they are convinced that 
 mankind is so changed, as to render all retrospect useless, and 
 all experience vain. 
 
 The whole aim of the Petitioners unquestionably is, to 
 obtain political power for themselves and their Catholic 
 brethren. But the grant of this would eiVectually give them 
 the ascendency over Protestants. 
 
 By an Irish act of Parliament, in. the year 1793, (acquired 
 by British influence, and passed in opposition to the opinions 
 of the best informed men in Ireland,) Romanists became 
 entitled to vote at the elections of members of Parliament ; 
 and a freehold of forty shillings annual value entitles the 
 person seised of it to a vote. 
 
 Now, the Irish Romanists Sive in the proportion of about two 
 to one to the Irish Protestants in general ; and the proportion 
 among the peasantry of Ireland is greater in favour of the 
 Romanists, than among the other classes of society. The 
 landed estates in Ireland, in the possession of Protestants and 
 Romanists, are in the proportion of fifty to one, in favour of 
 the Protestants: but when the bill in 1793 passed, qualifying 
 Romanists to vote for representatives in Parliament, the 
 Protestant landlords, almost universally, changed the tenures 
 of their Popish tenants, which before were for terms of years, 
 into freehold leases ; vainly imagining, that they would always 
 retain influence enough with their Romish tenantry, to com- 
 mand their votes at elections. Little did they consider the 
 all-ruling authority of Romish bigotry over its votaries, as 
 many of them found to their great disappointment at the 
 general election which first succeeded the year 1793. One 
 gentleman of large landed property, and a representative of 
 
 a county, informed Dr. Duigenan (as he declared in the 
 House of Commons) that he and his colleague had every 
 reasonable expectation, from their great landed interest in 
 
 the county, of being returned members for it, without any 
 
 • 
 
 contest or expence: but a gentleman of very insignificant 
 landed property in the county, unexpectedly declared hina- 
 self a candidate, and went round to all the Romish chapels, 
 soliciting the votes of the Romanists, and promising, if 
 elected, to support all their pretensions in Parliament. On 
 this occasion, the Romish tenants of the gentleman who 
 gave Dr. Duigenan the information, made freeholders by 
 himself, universally deserted him, and promised their votes to 
 the new candidate ; and tlie Romish priests through the 
 country so effectually bestirred themselves with their votaries 
 in support of the new candidate, that the Doctor's friend and 
 his colleague were obliged to give a large sum of money to 
 this adventurer, to induce him to abandon the canvass, and 
 thereby to save themselves from the fatigue ^nd expence of 
 a contested election. Certain it is, that the whole body of 
 the Romish peasantry, who, by the folly and credulity of 
 their landlords, have been made freeholders, since the year 
 1793, will desert their interest on every election, when told 
 by their priests that it is for the interest of their religion that 
 they should do so. In the last Irish rebellion, the Popish 
 peasantry pursued their landlords (most of them very indul- 
 gent to their tenants, and from their attachment to Romanists, 
 entitled men of liberality) with the utmost fury and rancour, 
 massacreing them and their families without mercy, when 
 they fell into their hands. Such has been the frenzy of the 
 Protestant landlords of Ireland, and their ambition of sur- 
 passing each other in county interest, that they have made 
 almost the whole mass of the Popish peasantry forty-shilling 
 freeholders, since the year 1793 : so that the Romish free- 
 holders of that description exceed, in number, the Protestant 
 freeholders of every description, throughout three parts in 
 four of Ireland; and if this measure shall take effect, 
 |U>i]ataitts will be returned members of Parliament for most 
 
 I 2 
 
 'I 
 
124 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THH CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 125 
 
 
 •n 
 
 of the counties at large, county towns, and potwalloping 
 boroughs throughout Ireland ; and thus we shall either be 
 represented by strangers, or unlettered boors. For, since 
 the right of voting has been granted to Catholics, the manu- 
 facture of freeholders has increased so rapi<lly, that there is 
 now scarcely a peasant, who does not swear himself possessed 
 of a forty-shilling freehold. The principle of representation, 
 in the British Constitution, that property should be the basis 
 of representation, will be completely reversed in Ireland, and 
 the basis there will be numbers^ not property, which is the 
 criterion of political power, more than the physical force of 
 the self-willed multitude. Now, the Protestants possess this 
 superiority, and love the constitutional liberty which accom- 
 panies it: they have dt ftnded and foMght for both, in 1088, 
 and in 1798. And thougli some alTirm, that, the rebellion of 
 1798 was put down, by other means than the Protestant 
 exertions of Ireland, I boldly deny it ; for it was- overcome 
 and reduced before one English militia regiment landed in 
 that country : and if ever so direful a necessity should occur 
 again, from either invasion or rebellion, 1 trust to the mutual 
 support of the army and volunteers of both countries, and, 
 in despite of all forebodings, have no doubt of the result. 
 
 But even in respect oi property, the influence of Popery w^ill 
 be daily advancing in Ireland, because, in a commercial 
 country, land is as often at market, and changes hands, as 
 personal property ; and landed as well as personal property 
 will, in a slow but certain progression, creep to that class of 
 the population which is the most numerous. 
 
 From the foregoing observations it is a just conclusion, that, 
 in a very short time, if this measure is effected, eighty, at 
 least, out of the hundred Irish representatives, will be Ro- 
 manists; audit is fair to conjecture, that twenty or more 
 Romanists will obtain seats in the imperial Commons for 
 English boroughs, as the whole Romish faction throughout 
 the empire will exert their powers to strengthen their party 
 in Parliament ; and som^ Romish peers will sit in the Upper 
 House. The Romanists will certainly act in Parliament as 
 
 one body ; their union, cemented by religious principle, and 
 the interest of their sect, will smother every seed of dissen- 
 tion among them. All allurements of individual interest 
 will fail of effect, when put in competition with the interests 
 of their religion ; their bigotry will bind them together in 
 adamantine bonds ; and what their conduct in the supreme 
 legislative council of the empire will be, it is not hard to 
 divine. 
 
 The first measure they will unanimously propose, and with 
 unremitting efforts pursue and support, will be the repeal 
 of so much of the Irish act of 1793, conferring on them the 
 elective franchise, as continues the disability of Romanists 
 without taking the oaths, to fill about thirty or forty of the 
 great offices of the state, in the departments of which is 
 lodged the executive power of the government. By the 
 incessant intrigues in Ireland of the English ministiy, the 
 test and corporation acts had been repealed, in that part of 
 the empire, previous to the Union, with the exception of the 
 abovementioned great offices of the state ; namely, the offices of 
 Lord Lieutenant, of Lord Chancellor, of the twelve Judges, 
 of the Commander in chief of the army, of the King's 
 Counsel, of Sheriffs, and a few others. If the prime minister 
 of the day, at a future critical period, should oppose, or 
 decline to support such a measure, the whole corps will 
 immediately join the Opposition ; and the Opposition, to se- 
 cure the assistance of such numerous auxiliaries, w^ill heartily 
 fraternize with them. For, as long as human nature remains 
 unchanged, while the Ministry wish to cling to their situa- 
 tions, the Opposition, per fas out nefas, will wish to obtain 
 them. Thus, in many cases of national distress and difficulty, 
 the ablest minister, though adverse to their claims, w ill be 
 unable to stem the torrent ; and the part of the test and cor- 
 poration acts, yet in force in Ireland, will not survive the 
 admission of Romanists into Parliament for many sessions. 
 When the capability of Romanists of filling these great offices 
 in Ireland is once established, will it be practicable to exclude 
 them from occupying them? Certainly it wUl not. Their 
 
 afgWMtfW ■ Bi -^,1 
 
ISf 
 
 BTHOI^G REASdKS AftAIVAT 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 127 
 
 .j 
 
 ; 
 
 )i; 
 
 lit 
 
 diMatiafaction at such exclusion, would be greater than at 
 their former disqualification. The great majority of the Irish 
 representatives in the imperial Parliament being Romanists, 
 aided by the- English Romanists, and indissolubly connected, 
 would wring from the minister the whole civil patronage 
 in Ireland, and secure all the offices there for their own 
 sect: in fact, the civil establishment in Ireland would become 
 completely Romish. 
 
 Would the Romish representatives in Parliament then be 
 contented? Would their Clergy in Ireland, and the mass 
 of their persuasion, acquiesce, without murmur, in the enjoy- 
 ment of the ecclesiastical revenues in lands and tithes, by 
 the Protestant Clergy? Would they not immediately grasp 
 at them ? At this time, in Ireland, each parish has its titular 
 jwiest, each diocese its particular bishop, and each pro- 
 vince its titular arch-bishop : and these titular priests and 
 prelates consider themselves as the rightful possessors of the 
 respective parishes and sees, and treat the hierarchy of the 
 Established Cf^urch as usurpers and intruders. Hence, the 
 titular arch-bishop of Armagh publicly takes to himself the 
 •tyle of Anna chene, and designates the Lord Primate by 
 the simple appellation of Dr. Stuart. The withholding from 
 the Lord Primate the title which belongs to him, in itself is 
 no great matter ; but the claim to juilsdlction, in exclusion of 
 t^e established priesthood and prelacy, is a serious considera- 
 tion. 
 
 It will be conceded to me, I presume, that the Catholics 
 have hitherto acted in a body. Why have they done so? 
 Because they had common objects. And will not the same 
 causes produce the same eft'ects ? If, then, the whole executive 
 power of the state in Ireland be committed to Romanists ; 
 if the Lord Lieutenant, the Lord Chancellor, the Judges, 
 Sheritfs, and all the administrators of the law in that nation 
 should be Romanists, under the influence and control of 
 their priesthood, who would warrant the enjoyment of the 
 ecclesiastical revenues there to the Protestant Clergy, or 
 maintain their possession of them ? The minister himself 
 
 would not be able to secure the laws entitling the Protes- 
 tant Clergy to these emoluments from alteration and repeal, 
 if the great body of the Irish representation in Parliament 
 demanded such a sacrifice, which it would not fail to do ; and, 
 in the event of a division, their influence would be as a dead 
 weight in the scale. Thus the utter subversion in Ireland 
 of the Church Establishment would follow on the heels of the 
 subversion of the civil, and Ireland would immediately become 
 a Popish country. 
 
 But would the ambition of the Romish faction in the im- 
 perial Parliament stop here ? Assuredly not. The tenets of 
 Popery enjoin continual exertions for its propagation, support, 
 and aggrandizement ; and every Romanist would beside have 
 the additional spur of particular interest and ambition, to 
 stimulate him to further exertions on behalf of the sect. 
 The test and corporation acts, being in full force in England, 
 would oppose effectual barriers against the attainment of 
 offices of profit and power io England by Romanists. They 
 would observe, that Scotchmen, by the weight of Scottish 
 representation in the imperial Parliament, much lighter than 
 that of Irish and Romish representation, had obtained such 
 offices in England, though they had almost engrossed all 
 places of emolument or power in Scotland : they would also 
 observe, that British and Irish Protestants were capable of 
 enjoying offices in Ireland ; but that British and Irish Ro- 
 manists were excluded from all offices of emolument or 
 power in England, by the test and corporation acts. They 
 would then loudly complain of this inequality of condition 
 with their fellow-citizens in the British empire, and state, 
 that tliey w^ere excluded from such offices in four-fifth parts 
 of the British empire, and admitted only to the full privi- 
 leges of citizens in the one-fifth, without having any exclusive 
 privilege even in this one-fifth. If the minister of the day 
 stood in need of their assistance in Parliament, as he often 
 would, he must listen to such complaints, and listen with 
 attention and favour. Circumstances might compel him to 
 join them in their efforts to repeal the test and corporation 
 
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128 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 1-29 
 
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 I 
 
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 acts ; and if he should determine to support these remaining 
 bulwarks of the Constitution, they would join the whole 
 herd of republicans, who have so often reprobated these 
 statutes, and attempted their repeal. Two attempts of this 
 nature, one in 1789, the other in 1790, must be in the recol- 
 lection of many members of Parliament ; and it required all 
 the talents of the able minister, who at that time conducted 
 the business of the nation, to defeat tiiem. It the party 
 which made these attempts shall be reinibrced hy above 
 one hundred members, steady and determined in their 
 hostility to these two statutes, who can answer for their con- 
 tinuance, as part of the law of the empire, for any length 
 of time? They will undoubtedly yield to the incessant 
 mining and continued assaults of a determined, vigilant, and 
 insidious enemy, constantly recruited by the venomous 
 oflspring of intidelity, republicanism, and jacobinism : the 
 Constitution, in Church and State, will infallibly sink under 
 the combined pressure of such a chaotic mass of desolating 
 innovation. 
 
 The attempt to obtrude this measure on the nation is, in 
 fact, but the rehearsal of the lirst act of the Gallic tragedy on 
 the British stage. The introduction of members of all 
 sects into the Gallic national assembly, was followed imme- 
 diately by the subversion, or rather extinction, of their na- 
 tional religion ; and that by the complete subversion of their 
 government, and the substitution of the most barbarous 
 despotism, which ever ravaged and deformed any region of 
 the civilized world. Principvs obsta. Let us lirmly resist 
 all approaches of the ferocious monster, Gallic anarchy/ 
 
 Indeed, the complexion and spirit of the times, imperiously 
 press this duty of circumspection upon us. Numbers, 
 among all religious denominations, are uniting with the 
 Roman Catholics, in support of their claims. And now cal- 
 culate what the Dissenters of this country are. Though I am 
 persuaded that numbers of them are truly pious, and as 
 adverse to the Catholic cause at those of the Established 
 Church, yet there is little doubt that the msyority of the 
 
 Arians, Socinlans, Presbyterians, and several smaller sects, 
 would heartily concur in endeavouring to overturn our 
 civil and religious polity. Add to these all such as are of 
 no religion whatever, w^ho would be glad to sacrifice the 
 Establishment, in order fo free themselves from tithes and 
 taxes — consider the tempting state of the possessions of the 
 Church as a source of taxation — contemplate the etlects of 
 an union of these bodies, acting systematically, and forming 
 subscriptions — recollect that parties may be in this country, 
 who would go all lengths' to attain and maintain power, and 
 nobody can calmly say, veiy serious attacks might not be 
 made on the e stab I i slim en t of the Church. 
 
 We iiie told this is not a time to exclude men from the 
 service of the State for religioas opinions. In the first place, 
 the Catholics are not generally excluded in Ireland ; and 
 secouiUy, it it not on account of religious opiuionSy but 
 because they will not acknowledge the siiprtmacij of the 
 /i7>ir, and come, in a general way of considering the subject, 
 within the provisions of the •24th of Henry the Eighth! We 
 are likewise told, that the Pope has now no power. But it is 
 not the temporal power of the Pope, but the spiritual power 
 of those over whom the Pope h:is great influence, which is 
 to be considered ; and if that unfortunate person, having dis- 
 graced his reverend hand by anointing an usurper, is a pri- 
 soner in his capital, and, under his direction, has a commu- 
 nication with Ireland, and spiritual mixed with civil autho- 
 rity, appointing the hicrarchf/ of the country, unconnected 
 with the crown, who can deny this is a solecism in politics, 
 and cannot be contemplated without apprehension ? 
 
 Certain it is, that the sway of the Roman Catholic clergy 
 in Ireland is now most formidably great ; and that there 
 exists, .It this day, a very numerous body of Romish priests 
 devoted to the doctrinal opinions of the Church of Rome, and 
 maintaining the spiritual and ecclesiastical jurisdiction of 
 that coi:rt. 
 
 Dr. Troy, in his pastoral letter, 1793, expresses himself 
 thups : ** The Catholics are obliged to believe, as an article of 
 
 
1 
 
 HI 
 
 
 '1 
 
 il 
 
 
 ]i 
 
 1 
 
 
 130 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 their faith, that the Pope, or Bishop of Rome, as successor 
 of St. Peter, is the supreme visible head of the Church on 
 earth, and the centre of Catholic unity, with a primacy by 
 divine right, of real authority and jurisdiction in the universal 
 Church, and that Catholics owe him canonical respect and 
 obedience on tiiat account ; and that the supremacy of the 
 Pope is one of those points on which all Catholics are agreed 
 as an immutable article of their faith." * The clergy, there- 
 fore, of the Romish Church, must enforce this upon their 
 bigoted votaries : and though it may be admitted that they 
 have frequently used their intluence, in the transactions be- 
 tween man and man, for good purposes,' yet they also have 
 the power of giving dfrection to the popular mind, with an 
 effect inconsistent with the general safety. In corroboration 
 of this opinion, I appeal to their conduct, in the late and in 
 former rebellions. In Ireland, the British Government hi- 
 therto have seemed to feel no apparent interest in opposing 
 
 ♦ When such a principle is openly avowed, at this day, who 
 that wishes well to his King and country can encourage a 
 people holding a doctrine, which, in the eye of the law, con- 
 stitutes them traitors? " By statute, 3 Eliz. c. 1," (says 
 Judge Blackstone) « to defend the Pope's jurisdiction in thig 
 realm, is, for the first time, a heavy misdemeanor, and, if the 
 offence be repeated, it is hi^h treason. And, by statute 3. 
 Jac. 1. c. 4. if any natural born subject be withdrawn from 
 his allegiance, and reconciled to the Pope, or See of Rome, 
 or any other prince of state, both he and all such as procure 
 such reconciliation, shall incur the guilt of hi^h treason. 
 The reason of distinguishing these overt-arts of Popery from' 
 all others, by setting the mark of hi^h treason upon them, 
 being certainly on a cv't// and not on a religions account. For 
 every Popish priest of course renounces his allegiance to his 
 temporal Sovereign, upon his taking orders, that being incon- 
 sistent with his new engagements of canonical obedience to the 
 Pope: and the same may be said of an obstinate defence of his 
 authority, here, or a formal reconciliation to the See of 
 Rome, which the statute construes to be a withdrawing 
 from one's natural allegiance ; and, therefore, besides being 
 reconciled to the Pope, it also adds, or any other prince or 
 state,'* 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 131 
 
 the power and encroachments of the Roman Catholic clergy. 
 The people have been left totally in their hands ; and from 
 that inattention, their great, much-boasted authority has 
 arisen. The Roinan Catholic clergy are now interwoven 
 with the people in all the common concerns of life. It is true 
 they cannot punish criminals; but criminals bear no proper* 
 tion to the numbers in anv state. 
 
 Let us now consider what is the effect of excommunication 
 among the lower orders of Irish Papists. It excludes a man 
 from his family, and renders him hateful to it ; drives him 
 from his little tenement, nay, precludes him from earning his 
 livelihood, if dependent upon his labour ; a power possibly 
 greater than any possessed by the State, from its general dif* 
 fusion, unsuspected intluence, and extensive consequences. 
 Add to these considerations, the recollection of confiscated 
 property ; the long series of injuries alleged to have been com- 
 mitted by the English against the Irish, the remembrance of 
 which has been constantly kept alive by tradition, and by re- 
 cent exaggerated statements ; and the "^velUknown historical 
 fact, that claims to property cannot fail for want of hereditary 
 succession, as, by the Brehon law, it exists not in indimduals, 
 but in the name and sept. You will tlien see the reasons and 
 motives for that dislike to British connexion, which has ever 
 influenced, and still influences the lower, and more numerous 
 part of the Catholics of Ireland. A peasantry, directed by a 
 Clergy, generally ignorant in every point but their school- 
 divinity, all instigated by common motives of action, and 
 irrecoucileable to British connexion at present — under such 
 circumstances, though we cannot anticipate what growing 
 wealth and more dilfused intercourse may hereafter effect, we 
 must still be narrowly on our guard. For these reasons, I 
 esteem a knowledge of the doctrines of the See of Rome, 
 and their ascendant power over the Irish Clergy, and the 
 Irish Catholics, as a most serious subject of consideration 
 upon this occasion. 
 
 It should also be particularly observed, that separation 
 from England has be^w the object invariabl)- aimed at, by the 
 
132 
 
 61ROJCG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 133 
 
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 SB* 
 
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 Pi 
 
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 middling and lower order of Roman Catholics and the gene^ 
 rality of their clergy, under every ciiange of governors or 
 government, proposed or attempted. Kvery passion, religious 
 and temporal, all their traditions, all their prejudices, united 
 to excite such feelings, and to render this sentiment predo- 
 minant in their minds. Therefore we should be deceived 
 most fatally, if we suffered ourselves to be persuaded that 
 they have changed these sentiments. The best historians 
 have agreed, that the Irish Catholics of King James's day, 
 used him but as an instrument of separation ; they rendered 
 him desperate with England, to ensure success to their de- 
 sign, by forcing him to confiscate all the Protestant and Bri- 
 tish property in Ireland. It is evident, therefore, that nothing 
 of political power can be conceded to the Irish Roman Ca- 
 tholics beyond what they already enjoy, unless their hierar- 
 chy can be reduced to a less offensive form, and the mon- 
 strous abuse of their spiritual authority be suppressed. But 
 tnis, I fear, is an LYo/)/a/z expectation. 
 
 Moreover, when we are called to give them political power, 
 w'e are not to consider Ireland only — we must look to the 
 situation of Ens^land, where the. Catholics do not enjoy the 
 same freedom as their Irisli brethren. Are they less merito- 
 rious ? Certainly not ; and before we give further privileges 
 to the Irish, we must put thtm on the same footing, and con- 
 fer on those in Britain the right of voting for members, and 
 all the other favors contained in the act of 1793. We must, 
 in the next place, if we comply with the Petition for the Irish, 
 make the English Catholics admissible also into the highest 
 oifices, and to seats in Parliament ; and then the Catholics of 
 England, Ireland, and Scotland, may sit indiscriminately for 
 every place thioughout the whole empire, into which they 
 qan find access, by any means they may think most likely to 
 obtain for them the favourable opinion of the electors. Will 
 you not pause a little here, and reflect before you proceed ? 
 Reflect that you have a Protestant Church, and how it would 
 tremble under such a change ; that men who profess the Ca- 
 tholic faith, and acknowledge a foreign potentate to have 
 
 spiritual authority within the realm, cannot be entrusted with 
 framing laws for that Protestant Church, and the protection 
 of the Protestant Establishment. On wdiat foundation does 
 that Church stand ? Is it not oh your laics 9 Do not its rites, 
 its worship, its possessions, its hierarchy, its pre-eminence, 
 all depend on the laws of the realm ? And are you ready to 
 fill your legislative assemblies with Catholics, with persons 
 attached and bound to another Church 9 Do vou forget the 
 necessary alliance between Church and State, that if you en- 
 danger the one, you destroy the foundations of the other? 
 
 Upon this subject, one of the m(5mbers in Parliament ad- 
 dressed the Speaker thus : *' I would ask, Sir, is the House 
 prepared to entertain this Petition, without going further ? 
 What is to become of the English Catholic, and English Dis- 
 senter ? Sir, I should be ashamed to look the latter, or either, 
 in the face, if I committed such flagrant injustice, as to ex- 
 clude them alone from the privileges now required of us. If 
 there are tests to which those professing certain creeds cannot 
 subscribe, are they alone to be bound by the influence of con- 
 science, and its dominion denied, where it should most pre- 
 vail, and where it is the bond of our liberties and our laws? 
 No, sir; and until some reconciling mean can be adopted, 
 let us remain as we are, and all unite in maintaining against 
 the common enemy that Constitution so superior to all others, 
 and which is the sole refuge of civil liberty in this quarter of 
 the world." 
 
 If these wanted any further arguments to induce us to 
 withhold all civil power from the Catholics, I would bid my 
 reader look to the present situation of the Pope, nominated 
 to the See of Rome, by the bitter ami avowed enemy of this 
 countiy, existing but by his permission, and suffered by him 
 to exist only from motives purely political. In case of an 
 invasion, and a probability of succ ess, can we doubt of the 
 Pope*s subserviency, in every j>arlicular, to tlie designs of 
 Buonaparte, agaiiist this co nitiy ? Can we suppose that 
 either bulls or briefs, influence public or private, that any of 
 the implements of superstition will be kept back, if they can 
 
134 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THIS CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 135 
 
 i 
 
 I 
 f 
 
 be employed with effect, in furthering the purposes of treason 
 and rebellion, in detaching the subject from his allegiance to 
 the Sovereign ? What the effect of these endeavours may be, 
 I will not presume to say ; I sincerely wish it may be less 
 than I apprehend, nay, that they may totally fail. All I 
 aver, is, that they tcili be employed ; and, under those cir- 
 cumstances, I think, that it is even mercy to the Roman 
 Catholics, not to put them in situations, where they may be 
 tempted to act contrary to their real interests, as well as to 
 their duty. 
 
 My firm belief is, that, as things now are, without a Pro- 
 testant Church, our Constitution cannot be preserved. If, 
 therefore, the Petitioners really feel that veneration for it 
 which they profess, they should be as ready as we are, to 
 deprecate all tampering with its foundations. 
 
 To increase our just jealousy, and needful vigilance, I 
 would only ask, how many times have Irish Catholics prof- 
 fered their services, nay, tendered their crown, to foreign 
 potentates? WUea General Humbert landed in Ireland, by 
 what description of men was he joined ? Were they not, 
 exclusively, Roman Catholics? What need of any further 
 instance ? AV^hat can we say stronger of any set of men, than 
 that they preferred Buonaparte to their lawful Sovereign, 
 George the Third ? 
 
 I therefore consider it particularly mischievous at this mo- 
 ment, by any measure whatever, to strengthen the hands of 
 those who must necessarily be objects of suspicion. At any 
 time, I should have thought, that the granting of this Peti- 
 tion must put our Establishment, in Church and State, to the 
 most imminent hazard ; but, at this critical juncture, it leads 
 to no less than the total destruction of the kingdom. 
 
 We must consider the Roman Catholics of Ireland as per- 
 sons who refused to submit to those laws and principles of 
 Reformation which had transformed this country from a Ca- 
 tholic to a Protestant country. They were now disposed in 
 Ireland to resist the laws in that particular, and will probably 
 continue to do so. They must, therefore, be dealt with ac- 
 
 cordingly; and, under such circumstances, it would be the 
 greatest madness to put into their hands more political power 
 than they already possess. 
 
 Britons, it is necessary to call to your recollection, and set 
 before your eyes, the statutes, the repeal of which must pre- 
 cede, or ^evitably follow, the adoption of this measure ; be- 
 cause this display must convince you, that this measure, and 
 its consequences, directly tend to the complete subversion of 
 your Constitution, which has been improving from the com- 
 mencement of the glorious reign of Elizabeth, till its attain- 
 ment of its present unrivalled excellence ! under which you 
 and your ancestors have lived and flourished, for two centu- 
 ries ; and which has descended, as an inheritance, during that 
 period, in succession from father to son. 
 
 The statute of the first of Elizabeth, enacting that all public 
 officers shall take the oath of supremacy — that of the first of 
 William and Mary, or, the bill of rights, new modelling the 
 oath of supremacy, and extending the sphere of administration 
 of that oath— the acts of the thirtieth of Charles IL, and the 
 first of George I., enacting that no member shall sit or vote in 
 either House of Parliament, till he hath, in the presence of 
 the House, taken the oaths of allegiance, supremacy, and ah- 
 juration, and repeated and subscribed the declaration — the act 
 of the thirteenth of Charles II., called the test-act, requiring all 
 public officers to take the above oaths, repeat and subscribe 
 the declaration, and receive the sacrament of the Lord's sup- 
 per, according to the usage of the Church of England — and 
 the act of the twenty-fifth of Charles IL, called the corporation- 
 act, incapacitating all persons from being elected oilicers of 
 any city or corporation, without their having, within a twelve- 
 month previous to their election, received the sacrament of 
 the Lord's supper, according to the usage of the Church of 
 England; and also requiring them to take the above-mentioned 
 oaths — all these acts, I say, must be repealed ! all the fortifi- 
 cations, so long erected for the safety and preservation of our 
 
 Constitution in Church and State, must be levelled with the 
 dust! 
 
139 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 137 
 
 tt*J 
 
 t fl> ~* 
 
 i)if< 
 
 Jill 
 
 mm \ 
 
 Judge Blackstone, an able and constitutional lawyer of 
 modem days, states, that the acts requiring all members of 
 both Houses to take the oaths, &c., were enacted to prevent 
 crude innovations in t(eli^ion and Government, The test and 
 corporation acts he styles the bulwarks of the Constitution : 
 and states, that they were enacted to secure the Established 
 Church against perils from Non-conformists of all denomina- 
 tions, among which he particularly makes mention of the Pa- 
 pists,^ 
 
 It is now time to advert to the conditions of union between 
 England and Scotland, and between Great Britain and Ireland, 
 which relate to the Church Establishment; and to inquire 
 whether the present measure can be adopted, consistently with 
 the obligation of these conditions, and the preservation of the 
 public faith. 
 
 In the act of Union of England and Scotland, the Hfth of 
 Anne, ch. 8. two acts of the respective parliaments of Eng- 
 land and Scotland, for the unalterable security of their respec- 
 tive Church Establishments, are recited : that of England 
 being for effectually and unalterably securing the true Pro- 
 testant religion, professed and established by law in the Church 
 of England, and the doctrine, wors'iip, discipline, and govern- 
 ment thereof. The English acts of uniformity of Elizabeth 
 and Charles II. and all other acts then in force (among the rest, 
 the thirtieth of Charles II. hefoiwnent'ioned), for the preserva- 
 tion of the Church of England, are declared perpetual : and it is 
 enacted, that every subsequent King and Queen shall take an 
 oath inviolably to maintain the same within England, Ireland, 
 Wales, and the town of Berwick upon Tweed. And it is fur- 
 ther enacted, that these two ac^s shall for ever be observed, as 
 fundamental and essential conditions of the Union. On these con- 
 ditions of the treaty of union. Judge Blackstone makes these 
 observations : " That whatever else mav be deemed funda- 
 mental and essential conditions, the preservation of the two 
 
 * See Blackstone's Commen. vol. i. p. 158, and vol. iv. p. 57 
 Svo. edition. 
 
 Churches of England and Scotland, in the same state they 
 were in at the time of the Union, is expressly declared so to 
 be ; and that therefore any alterations in the constitutions of 
 either of these Churches, would be an infringement of these 
 fundamental and essential conditions." The fifth article of the 
 Union of Great Britain and Ireland is in the following terms : 
 " That the Churches of England and Ireland, as now by law es- 
 tablished, be united into one Protestant episcopal Church, to be 
 called the united Church of England and Ireland; and that the 
 doctrine, worship, discipline, and government of the said united 
 Church shall be and shall remain in full force for ever, as the 
 same are now by law established for the Church of England; 
 and that the continuance and preservation of the said united 
 Church, as the established Church of England and Ireland, 
 shall be deemed and taken to be an essential drnd fundamental 
 part of the Union : and that in like manner the doctrine, wor- 
 ship, disciphne, and government of the Church of Scotland 
 shall remain, and be preserved, as the same are now established 
 by law, and by the act of the Union of the two kingdoms of 
 England and Scotland." 
 
 It is clear, then, that every measure tending to the breach of 
 these fundamental and essential conditions of the two Unions, 
 ought to be rejected by Parliament wath indignation : the very 
 proposal of such a measure is an insult to its members; as it 
 must be founded on the presumption, that Parliament is ca- 
 pable of violating the public faith, reciprocally plighted by the 
 nations composing the British empire to each other, on their 
 consolidation into one body. If this measure should be adopt- 
 ed, the act of the thirtieth of Charles II. requiring all mem- 
 bers of both Houses to take the oath of supremacy, and re- 
 peat and subscribe the declaration, will be repealed by its 
 adoption, as well as the Bill of Rights and the Test and Corpo- 
 rati'jn Acts: these are made perpetual by the conditions of the 
 Union of England and Scotland, being enacted for the preser- 
 vation and continuance of the Church of England; and, as 
 Judge Blackstone expresses it, *' for the prevention of crude in- 
 novations in religion and government" Exclusive of this direct 
 
 nil 
 
I 
 
 ■4 
 
 :« w 
 
 153 
 
 STR05G HEA90KS AG'AINST 
 
 breach of tl>e conditions of the Union, it is already shewn, 
 that the whole tendency of the measure, and its notorion* 
 eonsefiLiences, are, the subversion of the TstabUshed Church in 
 Great Britain and Ireland ; the introduction of infidelity and 
 atheism, by the annihihition of all the bonds of society, spring- 
 mg from an established religion; and the consequent intro- 
 dttction of anarchy vt\\d democracy—the true reason (however 
 cHsgui^d under the mask oi' lihera/ittfj why this desolating, 
 faithless, Gallic measure has met the approbation, and acquired 
 the patronage and support of all the Jacobins in the Eritish 
 empire. 
 
 It is, however, some consolation to reflect, that the subjects 
 of this empire, attached to the Constitution, have yet one bar- 
 Fier left to resist that inundation of impiety, democracy, and 
 barbarity, with which this measure is calculated to over- 
 whelm it: that is, his Majesty's co/•o«a^/o;^ (yatk ; which the 
 celebrated Lord Somers formerly saiil, ** ought to be reve- 
 renced as the Magna Charta of England." This barrier was 
 raised by the wisdom, piety, and patriotism of our forefathers ; 
 and is suilicieut to defend us, under Divine Providence, while 
 his Royal Highness, the Prince Regent, retains the sentiments 
 once expressed upon this subject by his pious and conscien- 
 tious Father — and which, doubtless, his real interest, manly 
 firmness, and solid understanding, will strongly urge him to 
 
 retain. 
 
 The oath enjoined by ihe statute of the first of William 
 and Maiy, to be taken by the King at his coronation, has the 
 following clause : " I will, to the utmost of my power, maintain 
 the laws of God, the true profession of the gospel, and the 
 Protestant reformed religion established by law,** By the act 
 of Anne, ratifying the Union of England and Scotland, as is 
 already stated, it is enacted, " that two acts of the respective 
 Parliaments of England and Scotland, for the unalterable se- 
 curity of their respective Church establishments therein re- 
 cited, shall be perpetual; " and in both of these recited acts, an 
 addition is made to the coronation oath ; and it is enacted, 
 
 that the succeeding kings of Great Britain shall, at their 
 
 cc 
 
 l-J 
 
 TUB CAtHdLIC ChAltii. 
 
 idd 
 
 coronations, swear to maintain and preserve inviolably thd 
 settlement of the Church of England, as specified in that 
 statute, for the unalterable security of the Church of England, 
 and the doctrine, worship, discipline, and government thereof, 
 as in that act specified." A similar oath is prescribed to be 
 taken at the coronation by all succeeding Kings, for the 2/i-» 
 tiolable preservation of the then established religion in Scot-* 
 land. This oath not only bindd the King to refuse his assent 
 to any alteration in the religions of England, Ireland, and Scot- 
 land, as they were established at the time of the Union of 
 England and Scotland ; but he is equally bound to refuse his 
 assent to any measure, directly tending to the subversion of 
 the religion then established ; and also to discountenance, qj& 
 far as in him lies, all attempts of that nature. 
 
 It is, therefore, sincerely to be hoped, that there will be such 
 harmony always subsisting between the King and both Housetf 
 of Parliament, that no bill will be ever offered to his Majesty 
 for his assent, which he is bound by his oath to reject, and also 
 by the express conditions of the two Unions consolidating the 
 British empire. And indeed, I must ilay, that the tendering a 
 bill for his signiture, which w^ould manifestly tend to a viola- 
 tion of his coronation oath, w^ould be an egregious insult to 
 him. 
 
 I shall now return to the consideration of the Petition wdiich 
 has excited so much interest. As the Lords and Gentlemen 
 who signed it, have particularly stated, that the principles, 
 religious, moral, and political, set forth in their Petition, are 
 expressly inculcated by the religion they profess ; it will be 
 incumbent upon me specially to examine the principles taught 
 by their religion, as they are laid down by their ow^n writers, 
 ancient and modern, and as they are warranted by the unin- 
 terrupted practice of their Church for ages. It will, however, 
 be first necessary to examine how, and m what manner, they 
 are disqualified from enjoying officee of trust, and occupying 
 feats in Parliament 
 
 The only obstacle at presei^ to the occupation of seats, ill 
 1^6 two H0US6S of Farlian^enty by «h« in^nvberd 9i t^itf 9»(it, 
 
 K 2 
 
 I 
 
 i 
 
 ^ 
 
140 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 i 
 
 arises from the raws enjoining the taking of the oath of suprc* 
 macy, and repeating and signing the declaration against tran* 
 substantiation, &c. by all the members of both Houses, previous 
 to their taking their seats, and voting; with which injunction 
 if Romanists complied, they would be as capable of occupying 
 seats in Parliament as Protestaxts. This injunction they 
 obstinately refuse to obey, and thereby exclude themselves. 
 If, indeed, they would otfer to take the oath of supremacy, 
 there migfu be some plausible arguments adduced, for the 
 repeal of the parts of these acts which enjoin the repetition 
 and subscription of the declaration against transubsiantiation, 
 &c. ; because that is a declaration against certain doctrinal 
 points held by Romanists, which do not immediately tend to 
 a disavowal of the supreme authority of the State, so far as to 
 countenance or command a resistance to the civil magistrate, 
 and is a matter of opinion only, unconnected with the Govern- 
 ment: but their rejection of the oath of supremacy is an open 
 avowal, that they do not admit the State to have any just 
 power to compel their submission to its laws, in any point of 
 temporal government, intimately and inseparably connected ^ 
 with the adniinistration of the supreme power in spiritual 
 matters; tha: is, in other words, they refuse and reject an oath 
 ufallcgianct to the State, and insist that there is an extraneous 
 power paramount to that of the State, to which their allegiance 
 iS due in all spiritual matters, or in all matters which that power 
 shall deem spiritual; and in all temporal matters which are 
 indissolubly united with such spiritual supremacy, which 
 amount to nearly one half of the whole temporal power of a 
 3tate ; and may indeed swallow up the whole, which it has 
 attempted in many countries: because the determination of 
 what portion of dominion, in temporal matters, is within the 
 vortex o[ spiritual supremacy ^ is left to a foreign ecclesiastic, 
 and his vassals the Romish priests. Within this empire, the 
 Pope never did claim any temporal power, save under the 
 pretext, that it was inseptirably annexed to the supreme 
 spiritual power, and a consequence of it. What immense 
 temporal power he claimed, and in fact exercised within this. 
 
 n-t 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 141 
 
 realm, under such pretence, let our histories and statutes 
 declare — the fourth Lateran general Councd shews the extent 
 of the authority over temporal princes, and their dominions, 
 claimed by the Pope. 
 
 The qualifying subjects, who hold so anarchical a doctrine 
 as a point of faith, to become part of the supreme power, by 
 admitting them to a share of the legislative authority in a 
 Protestant State, and that too a State the most forcible part of 
 whose supremacy is lodged in a popular assembly, is in its own 
 nature an absurdity, and must, if effected, be attended with 
 the most ruinous consequences to the Constitution. 
 
 As to the oath of supremacy, it w^as originally framed in the 
 reign of King Henry VIII. merely as an oath of allegiance; 
 the usurpations of the Pope then becoming intolerable in 
 England, he claiming and exercising a power over the subjects, 
 under the mask of spiritual power, or as closely annexed to 
 it, ecjual to the power of the crown at least, and in many cases 
 paramount to it, and subversive of it.* 
 
 By this oath, in its original form, the King was declared to 
 be the ofily supreme head on earth of the Church of England 
 and Ireland. 
 
 This clause was objected against, as an acknowledgment of 
 a sacerdotal power in the King. To obviate this, he declared 
 publicly, that he claimed only a civil supremacy ; ** that he 
 made no pretensions to any ^cfC6r</o^a/ /)02rer ; that his supre* 
 macy was not that purely spiritual power which is lodged in 
 the Church, but a temporcU supremacy over all the spiritual 
 power of it within his own dominions." 
 
 All the great officers of the State, bishops, and nobility 
 within this realm (two excepted — Sir Thomas More, and 
 FisTier, bishop of Rochester), took this oath. 
 
 Romanists were then better subjects than they are at present! 
 
 * See preambles to the statutes of the •24th Hen. VIII. ch. 
 VI, 25 ; ;2.3th Hen. VIII. ch. 21 ; 26th Hen. VIII. ch. 1 ; 32d 
 Hen. VIII. ch. 38 ; and thelrish statutes of the28th Hen. VIII 
 ch. 13 ; 2d Eliz. ch. 2. 
 
li 
 
 ■f 
 
 4 
 
 1 
 
 mi 
 
 1 1 
 
 V 
 
 U% 
 
 STROKG REASONS AGAINIT 
 
 The objection, however, being still urged by the partisanf- 
 of the court of Rome, Queen Elizabeth, at the commence- 
 ment of her reign, changed that clause in the oath, and in- 
 serted in its room, " that the King (or Queen) is the only 
 supreme governor of this realm, as well in spiritual or ecclc" 
 siastical things or causes, as temporal; and that no foreign 
 Prince, State, or Potentate, hath or ought to have, any juris- 
 diction, power, superiority, pre-eminence, or authority, eccle- 
 siastical or spiritual, within this realm." 
 
 To guard against any perverse interpretation of this oath, 
 she published injunctions, wherein she declared, that " she pre- 
 tended to no priesthj power ; that she challenged no authority, 
 but what was of ancient time due to the imperial crown 
 of England ; that is, under God, to have the sovereignty and 
 rule over all manner oi" persons born within her dominions, 
 of what estate, whether ecclesiastical or temporal, soever they 
 be, so as no foreign power shall or ought to have any superi- 
 ority ovPT them." The RomaiKSts, liowevcr, by the anathemas 
 of the Pope, were so changed for the woise, and their obliga- 
 tion of iideiity to their Prince and country so loosed, since 
 the reign of iieniy, ihat they universctily rejected this oath, 
 though simply an oath cj allegiance to tlieir natural Sove- 
 reign. 
 
 On the accession of James II., a bigoted Papist, he, find- 
 ing himself invested by this oath witti the supieme govern- 
 ance of the Established Church, was iuduceil, by his bi- 
 goXxy, in direct breach of his coronation oath, to use itiis au- 
 thority for the subversion of the Established Ciiurch ; and this 
 danger to the Church, from the Monarch's being endued with 
 such power, was noticed by the sagacious patriots who con- 
 ducted the Revolution ; and, on that glorious event, they de- 
 termined to rescue the Church from such peril, and expunged 
 from the oath of supremacy the clause, " that the King is the 
 only supreme governor of this realm, as well in spiritual or 
 ecclesiastical things or causes, as temporal ;" so that the sub- 
 ject is now only bound to swear, by the oath of supremacy ^ to 
 the independence of the empire on Any foreign power ; and it 
 
 M 
 
 41 
 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 143 
 
 is merely and simply an oath of allegiance to the State. In 
 fact it was always so, and such as no subject, who is not a 
 traitor, can conscientiously refuse. It is, as it now stands, 
 completely purged of all rcasonablcy or even plausible ob- 
 jection. It never was an oath of exclusion, or even of restric- 
 tion, unless of traitors — it is absolutely, strictly, and literally 
 conformable to the ancient and acknowledged common law of 
 the realm. That ancient common law is acknowledged, re- 
 peated, and recognized, in the preamble of the statute of Prae- 
 munire, enacted in the sixteenth of Richard II., at the time 
 this kingdom was in communion with the Romish Church. 
 That statute recites, " that the crown of England hath ever 
 been free, and subject to none, but immediately unto God ; 
 and the laws and statutes of this realm ought not to be sub- 
 mitted to the bishop of Rome, to be defeated at his pleasure, 
 to the destruction of the King, his crown, and his regalia, an<4 
 of all the realm, which God defend." This was the voice of 
 the people in open Parliament at that time.* 
 
 The Romanists of this day complain of tlie laws which 
 enjoin the taking of this oath, declaring that they cannot 
 in conscience take it ; that it is to them an etcclusive oath, as 
 they cannot sit in Parliament without taking it; and they 
 and their abettors (among whom in this point they muster al4 
 the Jacobins in the countrv) desire to have these laws re- 
 pealed. Now, what is all this, but, virtually at least, pleading 
 thus: We are from conscience traitors to our country; we 
 maintain that our country is subject to a foreign power ; we 
 are always ready to support the authority of that foreigtt 
 power in every possible way, by arms or othei*wise, and to 
 bow down our country to its authority. We therefore de- 
 mand the repeal of the laws which oblige us to swear allegi- 
 ance to the constitutional governing powers of our country ; 
 which repeal will be a national acknojvledgment of the de- 
 pendence of our country on, and its subjection to, a foreign 
 
 
 * See the statute. Carte's Ormond, vol. i. from page 36 to 4i 
 See also Davis's Reports, case of Praemunire, 
 
 ^'^ 
 
144 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 w 
 
 *. '.,' 
 
 kI !l'^ 
 
 trihunaL It will enable us to procure seats in the great su- 
 preme Council of the nation ; and confer power on us to be- 
 tray the independence of our country. The Pope and all our 
 divines assure us, that we are bound in conscience to do so, 
 when we shall procure power. Dr. Troy, our archbishop of 
 Dublin, an eminent dignitary of our Church, in his Pastoral 
 Letter, pubiisned in 1793, has told us, ** that it is a fundamen- 
 tal article of the Roman Cattioiic/ai^^, that the Pope or Bishop 
 of Rome is successor to St. Peter, prince of the Apostles, in 
 that See : that he enjoys by divine right, a spiritual and eccle- 
 siastical primacy, not only of honour and rank, but of real 
 jurisdiction and authority in the universal Church : that Ca- 
 tholics cannot .conscientiously abjure the ecclesiastical au- 
 thority of the bishop of Rome : that Henry VI 11. of England 
 was the first Christian Prince that assumed ecclesiastical su- 
 premacy, and commanded an enslaved Farliament to enact it 
 as a law of the State, and that the Catholics consider it as an 
 usurpation.'" Pursuant to this doctrine, we the Catholics will 
 endeavour, by every means in our power, to free ourselves 
 from that usurpation: and pray, good Protestant usurpers, 
 assist us in doing so! Put us into a capacity of eflccLing it! 
 that is, of betraying our common country to dependence and 
 slavery ! 
 
 The patrons of the Catholic claims argue, " that the senti- 
 ments of Romanists are changed for the better from what they 
 were formerly." It is already shewn, that if they have suf- 
 fered any change, since the reign of Henry VIII., the change 
 has been for the worse ; and that they now avow greater hos- 
 tility to the constitutional independence of the nation (justi-. 
 fying that hostility upon principle J than they did at that 
 period. But to give a clear and explicit refutation of this 
 argument, it will be necessary to expose the avowed prin- 
 ciples of the Romish religion in respect to temporal govern- 
 ments ; to inquire whether they have been ever disavowed, 
 and whether any material change has been effected in them 
 at any, and at what period. 
 
 And first, it is necessary to state, that all Romish bishops, 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIM?. 
 
 145 
 
 and among the rest his Majesty*s subjects now resident in the 
 British dominions, under the denomination of titular bishops 
 and archbishops (who, in direct defiance of the laws, assume 
 the titles of most reverend and risrht recerend, being the titles 
 of real archbishops and bishops of this realm), at their respec- 
 tive consecrations, swear an oath of allegiance to the Pope, 
 which is utterly inconsistent w^ith their duty to his Majesty 
 and the State. Among other clauses (all exceptionable) are the 
 following — ** that they will from that hour forward be faith- 
 ful and obedient to St. Peter, and to the holy Church of Rome, 
 and to their lord the Pope, and his successors, canonically en- 
 tering : that tlie papacy of Rome, the rules of the holy ib-thei-s, 
 and the res^ality of St. Peter, they will keep, maintain, and de- 
 fend against all men. The rights, privileges, and authorities of 
 the Church of Rome, and of the Pope and his successors, they 
 will cause to be conserved, defended, augmented, and pro* 
 motedJ' Another clause in the oath is, " that heretics, schis- 
 matics, and rebels to the holy father and his successors, they 
 will resist and persecute to their power." * 
 
 I shall next repeat an extract from the oath taken by all 
 Romish priests at their ordination. 
 
 ** Fifthly, the holy Catholic, A postolic, and Rom-sm Church, 
 I acknowledge to be the mother and mistress of all Churches; 
 and to the Roman Pontiti',succcssor of the blessed Peter, prince 
 of the Apostles, vicar of Jesus Christ, I promise and swear 
 true obedience. 
 
 " Sixthly, all doctrines delivered, defined, and declared 
 by the sacred canons^ and by the general Councils, and especial- 
 ly by the most holy Council of Trent, without the smallest doubt 
 I receive and profess; and whatsoever is contrary thereto. 
 
 • I 
 
 ♦ This clause Dr. Tory states to be now omitted in the oath 
 of Romish bishops, in countries not in communion Avith the 
 llomish Church, at the instance of the late limpress of Russia, 
 who made that a condition of her permitting a Romish bishop 
 to reside within her dominions, //such be the case, the oath 
 is sufficiently hostile to a Protestant government without it 
 
146 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAIICST 
 
 i ■ 
 
 i 
 
 a 
 
 .{ . 
 
 
 
 and all heresies condemned, rejected, and anathematized by 
 the Church, I equally condemn, reject, and anathematize. 
 
 " Seventhly, this true Catholic faith, out of which there is 
 no salvation, which at present I freely profess^ and sincerely 
 hold, I do promise, vow, and swear, that I will most con- 
 stantly retain and conserve inviolate, with God's help, unto 
 the last breath of my life ; and that, as far as in me lieth, I 
 will be careful that it be held by, taught, and preached to 
 my subjects*, or those the care of whom shall belong tome 
 in my function. So help me God." 
 
 The next evidence of the principles of the Romish reli- 
 gion, in respect to temporal governments, which it is proper 
 to adduce, is the decrees of the fourth general Lateran Coun- 
 cil held under Pope Innocent III. in lilo, in its third chap- 
 ter. This Council consisted of four hundred bishops, and 
 eight hundred other fathers. 
 
 " These decrees assert the power of the Church (that is, 
 of the Pope) of disposing of the dominions of kings and 
 princes; commanding temporal lords to purge their domi- 
 nions of heresy, under pain of excommunication ; absolving 
 their subjects from their allegiance, and exposing their do- 
 minions to the invasion of Catholics; denouncing against 
 Kings, rulers, and subjects, guilty or even suspected of heresy, 
 or inactivity in detecting and punishing heretics, the most 
 terrible temporal punishments, such as confiscation, banish-' 
 mtnt, torture^ and death; declaring that no faith is to be kept 
 with heretics, nor conventions nor agreements made with 
 them; or if made, that they were nullities in themselves, 
 and that no communication of any kind is to be held with 
 them." 
 
 The Council of Constance in lilo, the subsequent Coun- 
 cil of Basil, and the famous Council of Trent, of later years, 
 in the sixteenth century, all conlirmed the decrees of the 
 Latei-an Council, particularly in respect to heresy. That of 
 
 * All Romish priests call their parishioners subjects, in 
 Latin subditi. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 147 
 
 Constance, in conformity with the decrees of the Lateran 
 Council, compelled Sigismund, king of the Romans, to break 
 his faith with John Huss, and deliver him up to the Council, 
 contrary to his faith and safe-conduct, declaring, ** that no 
 safe-conduct given to a heretic, under what covenant soever, 
 by any emperors, kings, or other secular princes, ought to 
 exempt such heretic from the judgment of his competent 
 ecclesiastical judge, who may punish him, though he come 
 to the place of judgment, confiding in that safe-conduct, 
 without which he would not have come ;" and accordingly 
 John Huss was condemned for heresy by that Council, in itB 
 twelfth session, and burned alive in its lifteenth. 
 
 In conformity with the decrees of the Council of Lateran, 
 Pope Pius V. excommunicated Queen Elizabeth, and absolved 
 her subjects from their allegiance. His bull for that purpose 
 was afterwards renewed, and confirmed, by his successor, 
 Gregory XIII. Pope Clement IX. in conformity with the 
 same decrees, issued his bull, enjoining the English Roman- 
 ists to do their utmost to keep out the Scottish heretic {so 
 he styled King James I.), that he might not in any wise be 
 admitted to the kingdom of England, unless he would recon- 
 cile himself to Rome, and hold his crown of the Pope, and 
 conform himself and all his subjects to the religion of the 
 Roman Church. 
 
 It is to be remarked, that all these bulls were issued, net 
 from the private ambition of the Popes and Court of Rome, 
 but in direct conformity with the injunctions and decisions of 
 the general Councils of the Romish Church. 
 
 The Pope's legate at Brussels, in the year 1768, when an 
 oath was in contemplation in Parliament to be taken by the 
 Roman Catholics of Ireland, wrote to Ireland in the following 
 manner respecting that oath : — That the abhorrence and de- 
 testation of the doctrine, that faith is not to be kept with here- 
 tics, and that princes deprived by the Pope may be deposed or 
 murdered by their subjects, as expressed in that proposed oath, 
 are absolutely intolerable ; because, as he stated, those doc- 
 trines are defended and contended for by most Catholic na^ 
 
I 
 
 ill' 
 
 148 
 
 STJIONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 i 
 
 1 
 
 m 
 
 tions, and the holy See has frequently follo^ved them in prac- 
 tice. In short, he declared, that as the oath was in its 
 whole extent unlawful, so in its nature it was invalid, null, 
 and of no effect, insomuch that it could by no means bind or 
 oblige consciences. 
 
 It is now time to come to authorities still more modem in 
 this point, and those of men of the Romish persuasion. Dr. 
 Troy, the Romish archbishop of Dublin (who at this day 
 openly assumes, and uses, the arms of that archbishopric, 
 surmounted with a cardinal's cap, whence I presume him to 
 be a cardinal), in a treatise which he entitles a Pastoral Let- 
 ter, published by him in London and Dublin, bo late as the 
 year 1793, asserts, ** that all Roman Catholics consider the 
 express decisions of their general Councils as infallible autho- 
 rity in point of doctrine." And Dr. Hussey, who informs us 
 that he is Romish bishop of Waterford, appointed by the 
 Pope, in a pamphlet styled a Pas.oral Letter, published by 
 him in London and Dublin in 1797, not only holds the same 
 doctrine, but forbids all Romanists, under pain of excom- 
 munication, to permit any of their children, under any pre- 
 tence, to resort to a Protestant school. In the same pam- 
 phlet, he addressee the Romish soidier\', and exhorts them 
 by no means to obey their oiiicers in any orders relating to 
 spiritual concerns, v/ithout particularly specifying what he 
 means by spiritual concerns, but reserving the interpretation 
 to himself and the Romish priesthood ; and stating, that if 
 any officer should enforce obedience to his orders relating to 
 spiritual concerns, such officer might feel the effects of such 
 conduct in the day of battle ; that is, the Romish soldier 
 might then turn upon, and assassinate him, or desert to the 
 enemy. * 
 
 * It is very proper to remark here, that Dr. Hussey was, 
 within these very few years, sent over to Ireland by the Bri- 
 tish ministry, under the protection of the English Secretary 
 of State in Ireland ; and was made president of a most mag- 
 nificent college (infinitely more grand, and of more expensive 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMfc:. 
 
 149 
 
 . An English Ptomish priest of the name of Milner, who, as I 
 understand, is one of the four apostolic vicars in England, in 
 a verv^ recent publication, has taken some pains to inform his 
 sovereign, or future sovereigns, how far he or they may be 
 bound by the coronation oath ; and states, " that eveiy hu- 
 man laws iii^tl every promise or other engagement, how^ever 
 confirmed by oath, must necessarily turn upon the cardinal 
 virtue of prudence ;" which implies, that it depends, as to 
 the obligation of fulfilling it, in such and such circumstances, 
 on the question of expediency, I believe the Protestant sub- 
 jects of this empire have no great occasion to apprehend, that 
 his present Majesty will consult this casuistical Romish di- 
 vine on cases of conscience. 
 
 After this exposure of the present Romish religious prin- 
 ciples, so radically hostile to the temporal government and 
 established Constitution of the British empire, in Church and 
 State, of such antiquity, of such indisputable authority, and 
 of such recerit avowal, let the supporters of the present mea- 
 sure inform us at what period, and by what public authority, 
 did the Romish Church or its votaries renounce or disavow 
 any of these principles. It is notorious they never did ; their 
 rejection of the oath of supremacy, (simply an oath of alle- 
 giance, acknowledging the independence of the State,) and 
 their anxiety to have the law enjohiing the taking of it re- 
 pealed, amount to a full confession of the Romanists them- 
 selves, that they have not in any shape recanted their old 
 doctrine. 
 
 It has now been fully demonstrated, that the principles, 
 political, moral, and religious, contained in the Petition, and 
 
 foundation, than any college in his INIajesty's dominions), 
 then founded and endowed, for the exclusive education of 
 Romish priests in Ireland, by the Government, and by ex- 
 press directions of the British ministry : that is, for the per- 
 )>etuation of Popery and disafi'ection in so great a limb of the 
 British empire! and that Dr. I'roy, during the lieutenancy 
 of the Marquis Cornwallis in Ireland, was in great credit at 
 the Irish Court. 
 
 
n 
 
 i ^ ■ 
 
 i t 
 
 
 15Q 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAIUST 
 
 Stated to be those inculcated by the Roman Catholic religion, 
 are diametrically opposite to the doctrines taught and incul- 
 cated by the canons and decrees of general Councils ; by all 
 whten, lay and cleric, of the greatest authority amongst the 
 Romanists ; and adopted by the universal practice ef their 
 Church, from the date of the Council of Lateran to the present 
 day: for their modern writers (such as Dr. Troy and Mr. 
 Plowden) assert, " that the religious principles of Roman 
 Catholics being unchangeable, they are applicable to all times ; 
 and that if any one says, or pretends to insinuate, that the 
 modern Roman Catholics difier, in one iota, from their anc€3- 
 torsy he either deceives himself, or wishes to deceive others, 
 and' that semper eadem is emphatically descriptive of their 
 religion."— I come now to answer some objections. 
 
 It has been frequently and confidently asserted by Roman- 
 ists and their abettors, that the doctrines held by them re- 
 apecting the supreme jurisdiction in spiritual matters, and its 
 residence in a foreign tribunal, can never aftect the temporal 
 authority and jurisdiction in this or in any other country. 
 What has been already advanced is sufficient to refute this 
 assertion; but it is proper to add, that the supreme jurisdic- 
 tion in spiritual matters does draw into its vortex a very large 
 share of temporal power, as incorporated with it, even though 
 we exclude a vast portion of temporal jurisdiction, claimed 
 by the Romanists, as adhering to the supreme jurisdiction in 
 spirituals, which in fact does not belong to it, nor is embo- 
 died with it. In proof of this, let the preambles of the seve- 
 ral statutes, heretofore enacted in this kingdom, for abolishing 
 the Pope's usurped jurisdiction in spirituals^ be referred to : 
 they particularise the vast* portion. of temporal authority in- 
 separably annexed to the exercise of supreme jurisdiction in 
 spirituals. * 
 
 * See the preambles of the acts of the 16'th Richard II ; 
 <a4th Henry VIII. chaps. 12, 25; 25th Henry VUl. cbapsv 
 20, 21 ; 2(jth Henry VIII. chap. I ; 32d Henry VIII. chap. 
 38; Irish acts of 2dth Henry VHl. ciiaps. 13, 1^; 2d Ehz^ 
 beth, chap. 1. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 151 
 
 They recite tlie great mischief done to this empire, " by 
 appeals made to the See of Rome in causes testamentar\^ ; 
 causes of matrimony and divorces ; right of tithes, oblations, 
 and obventicms; bv intolerable exactions for bulls, delega- 
 cies, and rescripts, in causes of contention ; as well as for 
 dispensations, licenses, and faculties, in an infinite uiiiiber 
 of cases." 
 
 Matrimony is held by the Roman Catholics to be a sacrar^ient, 
 and the cognisance of it to belong to the A7?/re7wa/ jurisdiction. 
 This, in many cases, would confer a jurisdiction on the Pope, 
 as supreme head of the Church, of deciding whether a man 
 was the lawful heir of his father, and entitled to his real and 
 personal estate ; and whether a woman was entitled to dower; 
 with several other temporal concomitants. Excommunication 
 is a matter of jJ/>/n^2/a/ jurisdiction; and the tyranny exercised 
 over the property, and other temporal concerns of the laity, by 
 the Romish priesthood in Ireland, is terrible, almost beyond 
 description. Auricular confession and absolution, by giving 
 them the dominion over the consciences of men, confer a 
 mighty power in temporal matters upon them ; and Bonaparte, 
 though a fierce unprincipled tyrant and usurper, was so well 
 convinced that the supremacy in spirituals would essentially 
 coiitribute to the support and establishment of his temporal 
 power, that he procured himself to be crowned by the Pope 
 as supreme head of the Church, and to be allowed by him to 
 nominate its bishops. In short, all men of learning must know, 
 that the wisest and most sagacious statesmen cannot separate a 
 vast portion oUemporal influence and authority from the supre- 
 macy in spirituals. Their adhesion is indissoluble — they must 
 for ever accompany each other : and, let it be well observed, that 
 it has been stated on authority, in the House of Lords, that there 
 is, at this moment, a Consistorial Court at Rome for the express 
 purpose of managing the ecclesiastical affairs of Ireland. 
 
 It is still, however, urged by tlK)se wlio want to invest Roman- 
 ists with political power in the^ritish empire, that the doctrine 
 of tlie supremacy of the Pope in spirituals is not attended with 
 any ill consequences at present, and affords no subject of com- 
 
 i 
 
 >^ 
 
 
 ! M 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 it 
 
 '.. 
 
 1^ 
 
152 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 
 
 ] 
 
 \i 
 
 It 
 
 £** 
 
 
 1 • 
 
 plaint to the temporal power, in any state in Europe, Popish 
 or Protestant; though in all Popish states, and in many Pro- 
 testant, Romanists are admitted into places of power, and trust. 
 The plain answer to this is, that all the Popish states in Europe, 
 previous to the anarchical progress of the recent French revolu- 
 tion, were either despotic monarchies, or equally despotic 
 oligarchies, and that the people at large h^& no political power 
 in them. The despot, or aristocratic rulers, (insignificant in 
 number, when compared with the population of the State,) 
 possessed the whole political power ; and no person, pro- 
 fessing a different religion from that of the State, was permitted 
 to enjoy any political power. The great mass of the people, 
 being excluded from all manner of authority or influence in the 
 State, were, what Englishmen term, slaves: and every question 
 which could arise from the claim of Papal supremacy in such 
 states, was decided by the despots, and the Court of Rome. 
 As these despots were themselves of the Romish persuasion, 
 no controversy could happen between the temporal kx\6. spiritual 
 jurisdictions, on the score of heresy, or ditlerence in religious 
 opinions : tlie spiritualty could never have occasion to put in 
 execution the tyrannical decrees of the Lateran Council aprainst 
 the despots themselves ; and these despots actually became the 
 executioners of the judgments of the spiritualty, on such of 
 their enslaved subjects as presumed to question any tenet of 
 the Romish superstition; or they permitted the spiritualty 
 themselves to execute them. In respect to any other points 
 of ^erw/)ora/ jurisdiction, claimed by the spiritualty, as annexed 
 to the supreme jurisdiction in spirituals, it became the interest 
 of the despots partly to acquisce in them, and thereby to attach 
 the interest of the Clergy to their own domination, well know- 
 ing, that superstition can give strong support to despotic power, 
 by inclining the people to submit to slavery ; and the temporal 
 and ecclesiastical powers found it their mutual interest to unite 
 themselves, to ensure and continue the submission of the 
 people. 
 
 In Protestant despotic states, it is not of great moment to the 
 despot what religious opinions are held by a part of his sub- 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 153 
 
 jects : the people have no power in the state ; and it is of little 
 consequence to the despot, whether the men he employs as his 
 servants, are of one religious persuasion or the other, they be- 
 ing merely his creatures, and extinguish able at his pleasure. 
 But in Protestant states, in which the people, or their elective 
 representatives, have some share in the government, Romanists 
 were excluded, before the baneful progress of the French re- 
 volution, from all share of political power. The Swiss con- 
 federacy, composed of a league of small Protestant and Romish 
 states for their mutual security, is a strong instance of this. 
 In the Protestant cantons no Romanists w^ere admitted members 
 of the senates, or even to any places of trust or confidence in 
 the state : a similar regulation took place in the Romish cantons 
 with respect to Protestants. In the United Provinces, so often 
 cited as models of toleration, though all sects were tolerated, 
 yet civil offices were only enjoyed by professors of the established 
 religion : " It was not there considered as a punishment on 
 men, to be excluded from public offices, and to live peaceably 
 on their own revenues and industry."* Romanists were also 
 excluded in Holland from seats in the Assembly of the States- 
 General. If, therefore, the British empire is to be influenced 
 by the practice of every popular Protestant State in Europe, 
 Romanists should not only be excluded from all places of trust 
 and power, but from all situations which would invest them 
 with any sh2iYe of political power ; and, above all, from seats 
 in the supreme legislative assemblies, the Houses of Lords and 
 Commons. But the very Constitution of Britain is such as 
 renders the exclusion of Romanists from seats in the Legislative 
 Assemblies, not only expedient, but of absolute imperative 
 necessity. 
 
 In the British empire, the supreme legislative power rests in 
 the Kin<r^ Lords, and Commons ; the Cornmons being the re- 
 presentatives of the great mass of the people, or the democracy ; 
 the Peers, the representatives of the richest and most dignified 
 part of the people, or of the aristocracy, in these two assem- 
 
 
 * Hume*s History, vol. viii. page 274. 
 
154 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 1 
 
 ll< 
 
 II 
 
 blies, but particularly in the House of Commons^ vastly the 
 most powerful of the two, is vestetl the greatest and most 
 efficient part of the sovereign power of the State ; and to ad- 
 mit the ai'oiccd enemies of the Constitution in Church and 
 State, to form a part of the sovereip-tity of the State, is so 
 manifestly an absurdity in politics, that it is surprising such 
 a measure should be supported by men of ability, professing 
 themselves to be friends of the Constitution. 
 
 As it has been often openly and confidently asserted, that 
 the exclusion of Romanists from the Houses of Lords and 
 Commons is an unjust invasion of their natural rights, it is 
 necessary here to refer the readers to the second section, 
 which expressly treats of the natural rights of mankind. 
 But besides what has been already mentioned, this doctrine 
 may receive the following full and decisive answer. Man, 
 from his veiy nature, is a gregarious animal ; there is no in- 
 stance in nature of savage solitary man : society is necessary 
 for his preservation and the continuance of the human race; 
 therefore no right can be properly termed a natural right, 
 which is not also a social right ; or, in other words, the rights 
 of society are natural rights. If therefore any man, or class 
 of men, claim privileges as natural rights, utterly inconsis- 
 tent with the well-being, and even existence of the society, or 
 political state, of which he is a member, such claim is to be 
 utterly rejected, as not being properly a claim of a natural 
 right ; or if of a natural right, in a solitary state of nature, 
 (such a state being supposed to exist,) certainly not a claim of 
 right to be admitted by the society of which he is a member ; 
 because it tends directly to the destruction of the society, and 
 all claim of presumed right must yield to the paramount 
 claim of real social right, the preservation of the State. 
 The basis of the British Constitution is not equal rights to all 
 men, but only to those who comply with, and conform to the 
 tests which that Constitution demands for its security. Away 
 then with the claim of Romanists to seats in both Houses of 
 Parliament, as their natural right ! 
 
 Romanists cannot derive any support to their exertions^ 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 155 
 
 and those of their abettors, for the repeal of the acts enjoin- 
 ing the taking of the oath of supremacy, from the doctrine, 
 that ojofmo;? J, without orert ac^^, are not the objects of legis- 
 lation ; because the overt acts of our own countrymen, and 
 others, professors of this cruel and unrelenting^ superstition, 
 for the purpose of subjecting the British empire to a foreign 
 jurisdiction, since the commencement of the reign of Queen 
 Elizabeth, have been too frequent, flagrant, and notorious, to 
 be denied. Witness the bulls of. Pope Pius V. and his suc- 
 cessors, for the dethronement and assassination of tliat queen, 
 and of James I. ; the conspiracies of her own Romish subjects, 
 in conformity with these bulls, for her assassination, and that 
 of her successor ; the projected Spanish invasion ; the gun- 
 powder plot; the desperate Romish rebellion and horrible 
 massacre of the Protestants of Ireland, in the reign of Charles 
 I. ; the obstinate and destructive rebellion of the Irish Ro- 
 manists, in the reign of William III. ; the recent atrocious 
 rebellions in Ireland, and the unprovoked murder of thousands 
 of Irish Protestants, men, women, and children, in cool 
 blood : in extenuation and excuse of w^hich rebellions and 
 massacres, all the malevolence and falsehood of the whole 
 republican, Jacobinical, Frenchified faction in England, have 
 been ever since employed ; and I am sorry to say, in too 
 many instances, with a pernicious and even a fatal eli'ect. 
 
 Yet, notwithstanding the dangerous tendency of Popery, 
 even some Protestants are to be found, who complain of the 
 rigour and impolicy of Parliament, in continuing the re- 
 strictions which still remain, though these are the most im- 
 portant. The history of the country clearly shtws that 
 the measures adopted by our ancestors, though rigorous and 
 revolting in themselves, were dictated by the soundest po- 
 licy, and the most absolute necessity. This will appear, if 
 we only take a view of the proceedings under diflerent reigns 
 respecting the Roman Catholics. There is no instance in his- 
 toiy'of the Protestants and Papists agreeing in Parliament, 
 and conducting business of government and legislation cor- 
 dially together. Under the reign of Queen Mary, who (per- 
 
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156 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINSf 
 
 1+ " 
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 haps with good intentions) adopted such sanguinary measures, 
 the Popish interests gained the ascendancy, in spite of the 
 efforts of the Protestants. Tlie Priests tlireatened those 
 with excommunication, who would not give their votes in 
 favour of the Popish candidates, and by those, and other 
 means, the Queen procured a Parliament, which seconded her 
 endeavours to estahhsh Popery in this country. Under the 
 reign of Elizabeth, the massacre of St. Bartholomew * took 
 place. A conspiracy also Avas formed in Ireland, which 
 ended in the removal of the Marquis of Omisby, and left the 
 melancholy proof that many members of Parliament were 
 engaged in promoting the rebellion ; and no less than forty- 
 one members were expelled on that account, principally 
 from the House of Lords. In the reign of Charles II. the 
 royal word was given, that no attempt should be made to 
 establish Popery ; but tliat word was broken, and the high 
 offices of the State were filled with Papists; and when the 
 Duke of York afterwards succeeded, (an avowed Roman 
 Catholic,) matters were carried so far, that the family lost 
 the noblest possession that any family could possibly enjoy. 
 After such experience as this of the temper and spirit of the 
 Roman Catholics, were not our ancestors fully justified, in 
 the precautions which they used to prevent the recurrence of 
 similar scenes? Under the reign of King William, that great 
 friend to the liberties of Europe, as well as of this country, 
 these measures of rigour were first adopted ; and in conse- 
 quence of them, an interval of calm and tranquillity succeeded 
 in Ireland, which had before been almost constantly in a state 
 of agita^^ion, and continued even when rebellion arose in this 
 country. 
 
 Hence, I am naturally led to consider, what might be the 
 practical effects of a removal of all these limitations and restric- 
 tions, which our ancestors have laid upon Catholics for the se- 
 curity of the Constitution. And, in order to give this part of 
 the subject the greater weight, I shall transcribe the sentiments 
 
 Comber's History of the Parisian Massacre. 
 
 n 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 157 
 
 of Lord Hawkesbury (now Earl of Liverpool) as delivered in 
 the House of Lords. " These restrictions apply both to the 
 Dissenters and the Catholics^ but to the latter in a much more 
 extensive degree than to the former. It may be material, there- 
 fore, in this place, to state what was the cause of this distinc- 
 tion. There are, certainly, some classes of Protestant Dis- 
 senters who difler from the Church of England, on matters of 
 doctrine, as widely as the Roman Catholics ; there are some 
 who differ even more widely on the subject of hierarchy, and 
 Church-government; but there is this important distinc- 
 tion between Protestant Dissenters of every description and 
 Roman Catholics — the former admit that all ecclesiastical 
 matters may be the subject of internal regulation ; they acknow- 
 ledge no foreign jurisdiction ; they pay no foreign allegiance ; 
 the Catholics, on the contmry, acknowledge a jurisdiction in a 
 foreign power. I am aware that this jurisdiction is stated to be 
 confined to spiritual and ecclesiastical matters ; but it must be 
 obvious to every person who has considered the subject, that 
 it is impossible, in many cases, to separate civil from ecclesiaS' 
 tical power. In the Catholic religion, above all others, the 
 jurisdiction and authority of the priesthood interfere in a great 
 part of the civil and domestic concerns of life. Let any person 
 reflect how large a proportion of the property and civil rights of 
 individuals must depend on the legality and validity of mar- 
 riage ; yet, on this subject, the opinions and practice of the 
 Catholics differ essentially from those of the Established 
 Church. They consider marriage aa a contract to be entered 
 upon, in many cases, under different conditions, and indifferent 
 circumstances from those which are prescribed by the laws of 
 the country, and, when completed, to be incapable of dissolution, 
 on any account, by any human authority. The power to whom 
 they appeal, on all those subjects, where there is ground for 
 doubt, is a /ore/g/i power, wholly unconnected with, and, in 
 a greater or less degree, necessarily inimical to the State. Can 
 there, then, be any doubt of the importance and solidity of the 
 distinction between the Roman Catholics and all other classes 
 of Christians? Their obedience to 2i foreign jurisdiction fonns 
 
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 It 
 
 ;'* .5 
 
 
 158 
 
 STR0N6 REASONS AOaINST 
 
 an additional feature in their dissent from the Establishment to 
 that of all other Christian denominations, and renders addi- 
 tional guards against them indispensable : but, I say, with res- 
 pect to all descriptions of Dissenters, would you intrust the. 
 patronage of tlie Church, in its most important branches, to 
 persons whoconsideryourEstablishment/iere^/oa/orerfo/afro«./ 
 
 Are you desirous of seeing the administration of justice m the 
 hands of those whose religious opinions are, in most essential 
 paitiGulars, directly at variance with the law of the and 
 Would vou be satisfied that the office holden by my noble and 
 learned ^friend on the woolsack, should be conferred on a per- 
 son of a reli-ion hostile to that of the State ? Remember, that, 
 if leli-ion does really operate upon the mind of man, it must 
 operate far beyond all human considerations ; that no pious 
 man will prefer his temporal to his spiritual concerns ; that it 
 the religion and the State are distinct and at variance, and he is 
 compelled to decide between them, he must decide tor his 
 religion, and against the State. It cannot too often be repeated 
 that the question before us is not whether the Catholics should 
 enjoy toleration, or obtain civil rights or civil liberty ; but 
 whether you will grant to them political poxcer oUvery descnp^ 
 tion at the time when they refuse to acknowledge the complete 
 authority of the State. Whenever this question has been dis- 
 cussed in private companies, the only answer I have ever heard 
 made to it, is, that, as long as we had a Protestant king, there 
 could be no probability of any of the offices in question being 
 filled by any except Frotestants. But I ask, where is the se- 
 curity for this? where hnt in the /«u'. which it is proposed to 
 abrogate f And if this were the case, what is the boon sought 
 for W why is there any eagerness to attain it ? It would be 
 to deceive both Catholics and Dissenters, if we should repeal 
 these laws as a/.ro.r, and then refuse them the advantages 
 which they have sought for and expected in their repeal. If 
 the safety of the State requires a barrier, let that barrier be the 
 law, and let us have courage and firmness enough both to avow 
 
 it, and to maintain it 
 
 "The question relative to the admission of Catholics to Parlia- 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 159 
 
 ment, stands on this ground, their taking the oath of supremacy. 
 And I appeal to all considerate men, whether, as long as the 
 Catholics refuse to take that oath, it could be safe to admit them 
 into the two Houses of Parliament. I desire it may be consi- 
 dered, what is the purport of the oath of supremacy ? It does 
 not call upon individuals even to declare his Majesty head of 
 the Church, as he is by law ; it calls upon them only to abjure 
 ^W foreign dominion ^nd jurisdiction ; and as long as the Catho- 
 lics decline taking this oath, could it be consistent with the 
 security of the State, to consider them as competent member^ 
 of the legislature of a Protestant and independent country ? 
 
 •* The noble Lord (Grenville) has stated, that he could not 
 see any thing in the present times, which could render it inex- 
 pedient to grant the prayer of the Petition. As to this point, I 
 have a very different view of the subject. We have witnessed, 
 my lords, an amazing change in Europe of late. The extreme 
 of democracy has given place (as in the end it naturally must) 
 to the most arbitrary power which was ever erected in any 
 coimtiy ; and the person possessing that power has judged it 
 prudent to reconcile himself to the Pope, and to the Church of 
 Rome, as a support and assistance to his authority. Whoever 
 considers the extent of the power of France at the present mo- 
 ment — whoever reflects, that almost all Catholic Europe is in 
 subjection to France — whoever contemplates the absolute de- 
 pendence of the Pope on the will of France, and, (what never 
 happened in aii}^ former period,) that there is at present no 
 counterbalance whatever at Rome to the influence of that 
 power — whoever gives due weight to the considerations arising 
 out of the nature of the connection subsisting between the 
 Catholics of Ireland and the Pope, and will attend to the cir- 
 cumstance, that the Catholic Church of Ireland is under the 
 control and superintendence of a college of Cardinals at Rome, 
 must be convinced, that there never was a moment more un- 
 favourable for augmenting their political power. On every 
 sound principle of reasoning,, this could not be considered as a 
 proper time for agitating tiie Roman Catholic claims. Those 
 
 
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 ."« 
 
 
 I*; 
 
 ■] 
 
 160 
 
 STRONO REASONS AGAINST 
 
 who do not ag^ee with me in objecting to the measure on priti' 
 ciple, should nevertheless wait for the result of the contest in 
 which we are engaged — they should feel that this was the time, 
 of all others, when it would be peculiarly hazardous to part 
 with any share of that power, which, once parted with, it 
 might never be possible to resume, and which, if abused, it 
 might be beyond our own power to remedy. 
 
 " Let us not then consent, by any rash act, to endanger that 
 ancient monument of wisdom and piety, which has braved 
 CO many storms and assaults. The present is a most critical 
 period. At home, we are suffering under the most he-ivy 
 burdens — abroad, we are assailed by a ver\^ powerful enemy. 
 Such is not the moment for taking a step of at least a doubtful 
 tendency. We ought to be in a more tranquil and secure 
 condition, before we make such an experiment on tlie Consti- 
 tution as that now proposed. We should beware of tamper- 
 ing with the state crucible, and of mixing up ingredients, like 
 subtle alchymists, which might eventually explode, to the 
 direct and manifest injury, if not destruction, of the State. 
 
 " But the noble Baron says, that the influence of the Pope 
 over the priesthood can be no objection to the grant he pleads 
 for. He asks, * Do we think the Pope is more hostile to us 
 noWy than in those times in which we were at war with the Bour- 
 bon family?' I certainly do not think he is. On the con- 
 trary, he cannot but wish well to any nation that opposes 
 Gallic tyranny. But I think, nay I am certain, that the Pope 
 is the miserable puppet of the usurper of the throne of the 
 Bourbons ; that he dare not move but by Napoleon's com- 
 mand, and should he order him to influence the Irish priests to 
 rouse their flocks to rebellion, he could not refuse to obey the 
 despot. I ground this opinion upon his Holiness being forced to 
 anoint the usurper of the throne of the eldest sons of the 
 Church, from whose family she had derived most of her pos- 
 sessions. I ground this opinion upon the unfortunate old man 
 being obliged to call upon the very respectabe French bishops 
 in this country, who had left all for conscience sake, to forget 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 161 
 
 the solemn oaths they had sworn to the princes of the Bour- 
 bon race, and to take others to support tyranny and usur- 
 pation. 
 
 " Again, the noble Lord says,' That the rebellion of 1798 
 was not a Catholic rebellion, and therefore no impediment to 
 the concession demanded.'^ I have not heard any one state 
 that rebellion to have been a Catholic rebellion ; many of its 
 leaders were Protestants, or professed to be so. The present 
 General of Division, in the service of his imperial and royal 
 majesty the Emperor of France, and king of Italy, was or- 
 dained a deacon of the Established Church of Ireland, by the 
 father of the individual who has now the honour to address you. 
 Others, like Emmett, were professed Protestants, but were 
 real disciples of the modern French school, both in religion 
 and in politics. I bad the honour to be one of the secret 
 Committee of the House of Lords in Ireland, before which 
 those gentlemen made their confessions of treason. When 
 asked, whether the estabhshment of the Catholic religion was 
 one of their principal objects, they smiled, and said, that such an 
 idea never once entered into their heads; that they certainly 
 made use of the pretext of the Catholic religion, and of fana- 
 tical priests, as the best fire-brands to throw among the peo- 
 ple to rouse them to rebellion ; that their objects were the 
 establishment of a republic, independent of Great Britain, and 
 connected with, but not dependant upon France. A great 
 proportion of the [people in three of the provinces being Ca- 
 tholics, of course the rebel ranks were filled with men of that 
 persuasion, 
 
 " The noble Lord, also, is wTong in stating, that *. where 
 the rebel armies were strongest, it was in counties altogether 
 Catholic' The county of Wexford possessed great numbers 
 of Protestants, yet it was there the rebel troops were in the 
 greatest force ; it was there the greatest enormities were com- 
 mitted ; it was there I witnessed Catholic priests bearing in 
 their hands the sacred banner of the Cross, the emblem of the 
 mildest of religions ; it was there I saw them lead the infuriated 
 rabble to pillage, to destruction of property, and to the mur- 
 
 i 
 
 1 si 
 
 I 
 
 til 
 
IGU 
 
 >TRONG REASON* AGAINS^ 
 
 
 
 ' t 
 
 ii 
 
 
 
 der of the aged, the infirm, women, children, in short, \rhat 
 was most distinguished, what was lowest in the community. 
 I will not shock your lordships' ears by the disgusting recital. 
 But the noble lord says it arose out of the unhappy circumstan- 
 ces of the country. I profess I do not understand what the 
 noble lord means; but if he wishes to convey the idea that the 
 rebellion w^as produced by any oppression of the people, I must 
 beg leave, with great respect to him, positively to deny it. 
 
 " 1 oo on now to the consideration of the practical advantages 
 which would be likely to arise from the proposed measures ; 
 and I cannot but feel, that we are called upon to sacnfice our 
 laws, for a benefit to a feic indlviduah, but which would be. 
 likely to allord no advantage whatever to the great mass of the 
 Catholic population of Ireland. Every thing in that country 
 has already been conceded to the Catholics, which can interest 
 the great body of the people. They enjoy the right of admis- 
 sion into all oiTices, civil and militaiy ; the right of franchise 
 in their respective counties ; and, in short, eveiy right and 
 privilege enjoyed by their fellow-subjects, with the exception 
 of about thirty-eight of the first offices of State, and the ad- 
 mission into the two Houses of Parliament. Can we, then, 
 really believe that they feel much anxiety on the subject of 
 what remains to be given? I am fortunately in possession 
 of the sentiments of some important authorities on this part of 
 the subject. In the year 1 798, several of the persons who were 
 under th<^ accusation of high treason, were examined before a 
 Committee of the Lords and Commons of the Parliament of 
 Ireland, and were permitted to banish themselves at the time 
 of the peace, on condition of making a full disclosure of all the 
 circumstances within theiv knowledge relative to the rebellion. 
 I shall not allude to the evidence of that pei*son, who, but a few 
 weeks before, had been described to be the most virtuous and 
 t'lli^htened of patriots, but who proved himself on that occa- 
 sion, by his own confession, to be the greatest of traitors ;— I 
 mean Mr. Arthur O'Connor. I am desirous of referring you to 
 the evidence of persons, both in talents and perseverance , very 
 much his superiors. The firet is Dr. M'Nevin, a physician and 
 
 ii 
 
 ./ 4 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 163 
 
 a Catholic; the second, Thomas Addis Emmett, a professed 
 Protestant, and a lawyer. My Lords, the following questions 
 were proposed to Dr. M'Nevin by the secret committee of the 
 Irish House of Lords : 
 
 Q. Was any ecclesiastical establishment intended by the 
 new government ? — A. No : I conceive that a revolution would 
 of course involve the demolition of the Church Establishment, 
 and of course a relief of the poor from tithes. 
 
 Q. Do you think the mass of the people in the provinces of 
 Leinster, Munster, and Connaught, care the value of this pen, 
 or the drop of ink which it contains, for Parliamentary Reform 
 or Catholic Emancipation?—^. / am sure they do not : but they 
 wish much to be relieved from the payment of tithes. 
 
 " To Mr. Emmett, the questions, though not so pointedly 
 expressed, were of a similar natui^, and the answers are not 
 less deserving attention. 
 
 Q. Do you think the mass of the people care for Catholic 
 Emancipation, or Parliamentary Refonu ? — A. I believe the mass 
 of the people do not care a feather for Catholic Emancipation ; 
 neither did they care for Parliamentary Reform^ till it was ex- 
 plained to them as leading to other objects which they looked 
 to, principally the abolition of tithes. They were also taught 
 to consider that, when they became members of a democracy, 
 their condition would be bettered. 
 
 Q. Was any ecclesiastical establishment intended by the 
 revolutionary government ? — A, None, certainly. 
 
 •* Why then I have a right to infer, as well from these au- 
 thorities, as from the presumption of the thing itself, that, cir- 
 cumstanced as the great body of the Catholics is at this time, 
 they would not consider what you are called upon to grant, as 
 any desirable boon, or material concession to them, any farther 
 than as it would be a prelude to the accomplishment of future 
 advantages, infinitely greater. 
 
 " The noble Baron has declared, that, in acceding to his pro- 
 positions, we should part with but little, and grant much. I 
 say the reverse is the true statement. They have little indeed 
 to receive, compaitd with the much which we are called upon 
 
 f> 
 
 I'. 
 
164 
 
 STilONG REASONS AGAIX3T 
 
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 ri 
 
 to gioe. They are to receive access to a few official situations 
 in the State, and a power of sitting in Parliament. We are to 
 give up that, on which the vital liberties of our country rest; 
 that, which gives energij to our armies, and superiority to our 
 navies ; that, which supports us whole and unimpaired, amidst 
 the crash of surrounding nations, and maintains us, in the proud 
 preeminence which so happily and honourably distinguishes 
 the British name,— the glorious Constitution of our country. 
 Little for us to give ! do you say ? Call you the surrender of 
 the bill of rights, little ? A demolition of our Church Establish- 
 ment, little} The Protestant succession, little? What more 
 have you to give, or what will remain to } ou worth presei-ving? 
 I believe tliat what remains to be granted is all, because, if 
 granted, it might make the Catholics the State. I am ready to 
 give them every thing under the State, but I am not prepared, 
 and I trust, your Lordships neither are, nor ever will be, pre- 
 pared, to surrender the State itself into their hands. 
 
 " I have heard it said. Since you have ^q^'re^ so much, why not 
 relinquish the remainder} I answer, you have hitherto only 
 give them that, which, however beneficial it may be to them, 
 is little taken from you, whilst vou resolve to keep" what re- 
 mains. Recollect, that yon still hold in your hands the great 
 offices of State, and the tivo Houses of Parliament, and that 
 therein are vested tlie power, jurisdiction, and sovereignty 
 of the empire. Be lirm, then, in your present situation, and 
 your Establishments are safe : but every additional step you 
 take, may lead to the vital prejudice of the country. 
 
 *' I would now ask, whether, if this measure were conceded, 
 we really believe the Roman Catholics would be satisfied, and 
 whether we have any ground of contidence from past experi- 
 ence, that nothing further would be demanded, which it might 
 be indispensable to refuse, and yet which must be refused, (if 
 yod yield now to their demands,) with considerable difficulty 
 and disadvantage? In the Petition on your table the Catholics 
 plainly tell you, that " the tests which are now exacted from 
 them are painful to their feelings ;*' and if all the remaining 
 restrictions were repealed, I should not be surprised if they 
 
 -^ : t 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 165 
 
 demanded a repeal of the very tests, on the condition of taking 
 which they have been hitherto relieved. But is this all? Let 
 uie appeal to the history of Ireland within the last few years. — 
 In the year 1793, the Catholics presented a Petition, in which 
 they professed specifically to state all their grievances. Some 
 opposition was made to the pmyer of this Petition by persons 
 of great weight and respectability in Ireland ; but, in the end, 
 ALL that they prayed for was granted, nay, more. 
 
 No doubt but it was then contended, that, by conferring so 
 much upon them, they would be bound in gratitude to the 
 Government for ever. Their loyalty and aftection would be 
 secured, by giving as a boon more than it had occurred to them 
 to ask, and that then they would rest contented. But was this 
 the cas^? They presented, indeed, an address of thanks to the 
 Lord Lieutenant, in which they professed their gratitude for what 
 had been acceded to them, but stated, at the same time, that 
 they considered it as a first step only to further favours, and 
 expressed a hope that it would be followed by additional con- 
 cessions. As to the mass of the people, they were relieved 
 from every restriction which affected them. The profession of 
 the law was opened, the magistracy, right of voting, freedom of 
 corporations, trades, &c. What happened immediately? 
 Universal insurrection, devastation, and cruelty. May I not 
 then reasonably ask, if it is probable that those who returned 
 treason for kindness, and murder for favour, upon points which 
 directly affected them, are likely to become 7nild and grateful 
 subjects for favours whic^h affect them only distantly and col- 
 laterally } Such was the eflect of your last concessions. Is it 
 not important, therefore, to know, by what the present conces- 
 sions, if granted, maybe followed? Are there no questions 
 behind this, which may be brought forward hereafter ? Attend 
 to the evidence of Dr. M*^evin, and Mr. Emniett. Do they 
 not tell you, that, little as the Irish people feel interested in the 
 present question, they feel a strong interest in the abolition of 
 tithes } It has been a doctrine advanced, within these few 
 years, by several persons dissenting from the Church Establish- 
 
 
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 166 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 167 
 
 ment, that no person ought to be bound to pay to the Church 
 of which he is not a member. This doctrine was adopted by 
 many of the chiefs of the Irish rebellion : and I would ask the 
 House, whether the argument of some in favour of the conces- 
 sions now proposed, in consequence of the Catholics being 50 
 great a majority of the people, might not be afterwards applied, 
 with at least equal plausibility, to the question of their cor^ 
 tributing to your Church Establishment .^— What would be the 
 consequence? Why; that, in making this concession, you 
 would only change the ground of the contest ; and, instead of 
 contending with them on a question on which the great mass 
 of the population cannot have, and, in point of fact, have not, 
 any material interest whatever, you would have to contend 
 with them upon a point, on which all the passions, the preju- 
 dices, and the interests of the people would be naturally and 
 easily embarked against you. 
 
 « Believe me, the laws you are desired to repeal, are the out- 
 works of your Church Establishment. As long as they are 
 preserved, the Establishment itself cannot and will not be as- 
 sailed. Struggle, therefore, for them, to the last ; and remem- 
 ber that if you are there defeated, the contest is not at an end; 
 you will only change the sce«e of action, and have to resist 
 the enemy, in a situation where /ii^ power of attack will be more 
 formidable, and yovr means of defence much less powerful. 
 
 « The expectation that concessions, as such, should lead to 
 peace, is unfortunately contrary to the experience we have had 
 in the history of Ireland. No man can lament, more than 1 do, 
 the greater part of the penal code which was enacted against 
 the Catholics in the reign of Queen Anne ; but there is one 
 singular circumstance attendant upon the enactment of that 
 code, and which deserves peculiar attention.— Though Ireland, 
 from' its first conquest to that period, had, with very small in- 
 terruptions, been the theatre of rebellion and insurrection, yet, 
 from the time of the adoption of that code to the period of its 
 repeal, during a long series of years, (notwithstanding there was 
 . a new family upon the throne, possessing a disputed title to th^ 
 
 cix)wn ; notwithstanding two formidable rchelliojis in Great Bri^ 
 tain,) Ireland remained in a state of repose'SivA tranqnillity^'it was 
 not till after the policy of concession had been adopted, that 
 disaffection, insurrection, and, ultimately, rebellion, made again 
 their appearance in that country. Concession also seems to 
 have been too often made to clamour, for the purpose of 
 averting the danger of the moment. Such concession led na- 
 tumlly to new demands ; such demands have, on some occa- 
 sions, been precipitately con) plied with ; and the conse- 
 quence has been, that discontent has been fostered and 
 encouraged, and some inconsistencies have been introduced 
 into the laws of that country, which it is impossible not to 
 regret. Viewing the subject in this light, I believe that the 
 tranquillity of Ireland would have been better consulted, if, 
 instead of the temporary expedients just described, a mature 
 and steady view had been taken of the whole of its condition; 
 if it had been deliberately inquired, what concessions might 
 have he^n made without much hazard, and what ought to have 
 been /or ever refused : this being ascertained, it would have 
 been the part of a liberal and enlightened policy to grant 
 whatever the safety^of the State would have permitted ; and 
 there would have been this convenience in such a proceeding, 
 the deliberation with which the concessions would have been 
 made, would have sanctioned the concessions themselves. 
 At the same time, it would have been a bar to further de- 
 mands, and we should have been equally tranquil ami equally 
 safe in what we refused, and what we granted. My Lords, I 
 have been at all times friendly to a mild and conciliatory ex- 
 ercise of the laws in Ireland: but Nvhilst I state this to have 
 been my opinion and practice, I must be allowed to say, that 
 I have formed a very erroneous judgment of the character of 
 the people of Ireland, if I have not learned that that policy, ■ 
 which, in my judgment, is most compatible with mild laws, 
 namely, a steady system of government, is the best chance 
 you can have for the internal peace and tranquillity of that 
 countrv. 
 
 " The maxims which I have adduced in support of our 
 
 V 
 
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 I 
 
 'HI 
 
 I 
 
 u 
 
 h-. 
 
 
 lOi 
 
 'li 
 
 i 
 
 168 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 established laws, are neither new in themselves, nor confined 
 to the country in which we have the blessing of being bom ; 
 they are the maxims and principles which have been hitherto 
 adopted by every free community of Europe, as well in an- 
 cient as in modern times. It has been, till within these few 
 years, a principle uniformly recognised, that the State and the 
 established religion of a country must be connected ; and that 
 those who possess political power in the former, owe a certain 
 degree of obedience and homage to the latter, 
 
 " If I look to the ancients, I find that, in the republic of 
 Athens, no citizen could take a share in the civil administra- 
 tion, or enter upon any public office, before he had taken an 
 oath that lie would defend and protect his country, and its 
 religion, and that he would conform to the national worship. 
 •• In the republic of Rome, the great civil and military officers 
 could only be appointed through the concurrent sanction of 
 the established rights ; without the due performance of these, 
 the appointments were not good, the parties were said to be 
 vitio creati, and they lost their situations. 
 
 " If I look to modern times, I find that, in the republic of 
 Holland, the principal officegof the State could only be 
 holden by those who professed the established religion of the 
 country. In the Government of Poland, (a limited monarchy 
 in principle, however vitious it might be in practice,) the same 
 maxim was entertained and acted upon. Similar principles 
 will be found to have per^-aded almost all the free govern- 
 ments of Europe: and I know not how I can better sum up 
 what was understood to be the system and practice of Europe 
 in this respect, than in the words of our glorious deliverer, 
 Ktng William ; who, when applied to by King James, on the 
 subject of indulgence to the Catholics, made, through Mr. 
 Fagel, the following answer : 
 
 «* Their highnesses ever had a profound submission to his 
 Majesty, &c. &c. : but since the matter that was then in 
 hand, related not to the making of new laws, but to the total 
 abrogation of those already made both by King and Parlia- 
 ment, their highnesses did not see how it could be expected 
 
 H 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 169 
 
 of them, that they should consent to such an abrogation, to 
 which they had so just an aversion ; as being a thing so 
 contrary to all the laws and customs of all Christian States, 
 whether Protestants or Papists, icho admitted none to a share 
 in the Government or public employments, but those who pro- 
 fessed the public and established religion, and endeavoured to 
 secure it against all attempts whatsoever." 
 
 " There are, I know, two most important exceptions, in 
 recent times, to this policy : the first is to be found in the 
 conduct of the national assembly of France, who proclaimed 
 the equality of all religions ; which was only a prelude to the 
 destruction of every description of religion in that country. 
 The second exception to this principle, Js the system of the 
 United States of America. I desire that any person, who is 
 disposed to hold out this system as a subject for imitation, 
 would inform himself of the situation of that country ; I desire 
 that he would read the accounts of the different persons who 
 have visited it w^ithin these few years. What will he learn 
 from these accounts ? Why, that one of the circumstances 
 which attracts the attention of every stranger who passes 
 through this country, is the apparent indifference, in many 
 parts of it, to all religion, — that the public worship appears to be 
 neglected, the Churches are sufiered to be in ruin. Can such a 
 state of things exist, and have no effect on the morals, temper, 
 and dispositions of a people? Should, then, America, in this 
 respect, be an example even for a neic community f But can 
 she be an example to a country like Great Britain, whose 
 pride and glory it has been, whose pride and glory, I trust, it 
 ever will be, to exist under a different system, and to have 
 been fostered and supported under different principles ? 
 
 ** Doubtless, there are some good and virtuous men, who 
 believe that the indulgence claimed by the Catholics should 
 be granted ; but it is certain, also, that some of the most active 
 friends to the proposed measure, have no small degree of 
 insensibility, on the subject of religion. If religion be neces- 
 sary for the happiness of mankind. States must be in earnest 
 about it, as nr^ll as individuals. 1 he people of every country 
 
 •II 
 Mia 
 

 170 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 f 
 
 I 
 
 will look, and have a right to look, to what their civil gover- 
 nors tkinh'y and hoic their civil governors act. It* tlicy arc zea- 
 lotiSy if they are united, it will have a considerable etVect in 
 producing the same qualities in the community over which 
 ttiev are placed; if they arc lukewarm, if they are dkidtd, 
 what can be expected from the people? 
 
 " I have already stated, that i was ready to admit that no 
 laws could he perpetual; but there are certain laws, so incor- 
 porated with the very existence of a State, that to attempt 
 materially to afiect them, may be replete with the greatest 
 perils. I consider the connexion which has subsisted between 
 the Church Establishment and the Constitution of this country 
 to be of that nature. I.ct us rennniber that, if the Church 
 owes its existence to the protection of the State, the Consti- 
 tution owes not less its existence to the support it has occa- 
 sionally met with from the Church. In the reign of Charles 
 the First, the party who meditated and ultimately accom- 
 plished the ruin of the monarchy, meditated at the same time, 
 and equally accomplished, the ruin of the Church Establish- 
 ment : they fell together, and, at the Restoration, they rose 
 again together. In the beginning of the reign of Charles the 
 Second, when the tide ran high in favour of monarchy, the 
 only resistance which was made to that prince for some years, 
 was made by the Church party : and to their opposition at that 
 time, we were indebted for the preservation of any part of 
 our political liberties. I come then to the Revolution : and 
 let me ask any person acquainted with the history of that 
 period, whether the zeal of the Whigs for liberty could have 
 effected it, if they had not been aided, seconded, and abetted 
 by the zeal of the Tories for the Established Church? 
 
 " I call not therefore upon any one of the great parties into 
 which this country has been divided, — I call upon them all, for 
 support this night : I call upon the Whigs, who have ever 
 gloried in the lead which they took in the revolution of 1688, 
 who have ever considered themselves as the principal promoters 
 of the Bill of Rights and Act of Settlement^^l call upon them to- 
 support the system of King William, and the laws enacted 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 171 
 
 under his auspices, — I call upon the Tories, the firm, steady, 
 and persevering supporters oi the Monarchy and the Established 
 Church — I call upon them to maintain those laws w4iich are 
 the bulwarks of the Establishments. Instead of repealing, I 
 implore you to support the laws under which you have lived 
 and prospered, to cling to that policy which, in my conscience 
 I believe, has made you what you are, and under w^hich you 
 have enjoyed liberty, toleration, wealth, tranquillity, beyond 
 what ever was enjoyed by any country on the face of the earth. 
 Avoid ra^sh innovations, shun new experiments. The future 
 destiny of our count ly is not in our own hands ; kingdoms may 
 rise and fall, flourish or decay; but let us not be ourselves the 
 instruments of that blow which may occasion our destruction. 
 Let us not despise the wisdom of our ancestors, nor forget the 
 dangers which they have averted ! Let us reflect that all past 
 experience and all authority is in favour of our laws, and that it 
 is only by ^steady adherence to that system, which we have re- 
 ceived from our forefathers, and a firm determination to trans- 
 mit it to our descendants, that we can hope to exist w^ith 
 credit, or lo fall (if we must fall) with honour. Impressed 
 with these considerations ; fully convinced that any proposition 
 leading to the repeal of those laws which are the foundation of 
 all our happiness, security, and prosperity; and satisfied that 
 the best interests of the countiy would be exposed to the most 
 serious danger, I heartily deprecate the experiment, and trust 
 that it will never be tried." 
 
 In similar strains of eloquence, and powerful reasoning", a 
 noble Earl thus concluded his speech. *' In this view of the 
 question, shall I, my Lords, comply with the prayer of the 
 Petition? I trust not — the experiment is too desperate to be 
 hazarded. The principles established at the Revolution are 
 the landmarks by which I a<lvise you to Ji:uide your conduct. 
 The blessingt. we have enjoyed, by the operation of those prin- 
 ciples, have not been equalled by the people of any country 
 that have ever existed. The British Constitution has stood 
 firm, amidst those storms by wliidi Europe has* been convulsed 
 during the critical times in which it has been your Lordships' 
 
 u 
 
 
172 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 173 
 
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 destiny to live. The interests of the Church are so interwoven 
 with those of the State, that the one cannot be shaken, without 
 endangering the other. No substantial reason for the proposed 
 innovation has been adduced, whilst much cause for remaining 
 as we are, is felt by every man. The people of England look 
 to the decisions of your Lordships with an anxious expectation, 
 and 1 trust they will not be disappointed. Feeling as I do, 
 that the prayer of the Petition might be fatal to the title of the 
 House of Brunswick, to the throne of the United Kingdom, 
 I would not place the noble Lord upon the woolsack in the 
 distressing predicament of presenting a bill to his Majesty for 
 his assent, which, exclusive of other important considerations, 
 was calculated to destroy the permanent interests of his family : 
 I will therefore be no party to such a proposition." 
 
 Though the preceding arguments are very forcible, yet it 
 may not be amiss to corroborate them by the speeches of other 
 distinguished personages : for, " in a multitude of counsellors 
 there is safety." I shall, therefore, begin with part of the 
 Bishop of St. Asaph's oration. ** I think, my Lords, that the 
 Roman Catholics are as well entitled to every thing which can 
 be properly called to/eration, and to every indulgence which can 
 be extended to them, with safety to the principles of our 
 Constitution, as many of those who do us the honour to call 
 themselves our Protestant brethren ! But my mind is so un- 
 fashionably constructed that it cannot quit hold of the dis- 
 tinction between toleration and admission to political power smd 
 authority in the State.* The object of toleration is conscien- 
 tious scruples. 1 conceive that the Roman Catholics already 
 enjoy a perfect toleration, in this respect. The statutes, which 
 exclude them from offices of high trust and authority in the 
 State, are not penal. Such exclusions are not penalties, and 
 the relaxation of those statutes would not be toleration : it 
 would be an indulgence of a very different kind. And although 
 I wish the Roman Catholics should enjoy toleration in its full 
 
 * S^ee also Bishop Porteus's Reasons against Emancipating 
 the Catholics. Price 1^. J. J. Stockdale. 
 
 extent, that they should be subject to no penalties for any re-* 
 iigious opinions which may be peculiar to them, to no restraint 
 in the use of their own forms of worship among themselves ;' 
 yet I could not, without anxiety and apprehension, see a Roman 
 Catholic upon that woolsack, where my noble and learned friend 
 now sits, or on the bench of justice, so worthily occupied by 
 a noble and learned lord at my right hand. My Lords, this 
 Petition goes this length. It prays, that a Roman Catholic 
 may be invested with the capacity of being any thing in the 
 State, but King. Now, if there would be no danger to the 
 Constitution, to admit a Roman Catholic to be any thing but 
 King, if this would be a safe thing to do, I confess it is beyond 
 the powei-s of my mind to imagine upon what principle the 
 Act of Settlement can be defended. 
 
 t 
 
 •* My Lords, my mind is not yet brought to that modem 
 libei-ality of sentiment, which holds it to be a matter of indif- 
 ference to the State, of what religion the persons may be, who 
 fll its highest offices. I hold, that there is danger to the State, 
 when persons are admitted to high offices, who are not of the 
 religion of the State, be it what it may. And I am ready to 
 argue this very fairly ; I think in my conscience, that I myself, 
 being a Protestant, should have been a very unfit person to 
 have held any high office under the old French government. 
 My Lords, the noble Secretary of State, in the former night's 
 debate, argued this point of the inexpediency of admitting 
 persons differing in religious persuasion from the State ; he 
 argued it from the practice of antiquity ; and he argued justly. 
 It certainly was the policy of all the States of antiquity, to re- 
 quire that persons in office in the State, should be of the esta* 
 hlished religion of the country. I shall argue from the sad ex- 
 perience, which modern times afford, of the mrschief of giving 
 way to the contrary principle. Having said that I will argue 
 from modern times, I may seem to be going somewhat back, 
 if I mention the French Hugonots. But they are an instance in 
 point. I will say, that the Hugonots were very bad subjects 
 of Roman Catholic France. They became bad subjects, in . 
 consequence of the extravagant indulgences, which, for a long 
 
174 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 175 
 
 niii't 
 
 -i 
 
 
 A 
 
 n- 
 
 '"7 
 
 I' 
 
 series of years, they Avere permitted to enjoy. They became 
 at last so bad, that the French government was provoked to 
 retract those indulgences ; and the cruel persecution took place, 
 which drove them from their countiy. The persecution was 
 cruel, but it was the natural effect of impolitic indulgence ; 
 and such indulgence may always be expected to terminate in 
 such cruelty. But, I rely chiefly on the events of much later 
 times ;— of our own times, I ask, what was the real beginning 
 and radical cause of that dreadful convulsion, which, at this 
 moment, shakes all Europe ? What was the real begiminsr 
 and first cause of the subversion of the ancient French govi r - 
 ment, and of the overthrow of the venerable Gallican Churc* r 
 Many are inclined to believe, it was the placing of NecUar, that 
 Protestant republican, at the head of the councils oi monarchical 
 Roman Catholic France 9 
 
 " Now, my Lords, if there be some danger in admitting a 
 Protestant (especially one of Republican principUs) to any 
 high part in a Homa/i CflftAo/ic government, the danger certainly 
 must be much greater of admitting a Roman Catholic to any 
 high part in a Protestant government. And for this reason; 
 that the Roman Catholic pledges his obedience, within a cer- 
 tain limit at least, to a foreign power, which is not the case of 
 the Protestant. I say, within a certain limit. For I am aware 
 of tho distinction, between the spiritual suprer\iacy of the 
 Pope, which is all the Roman Catholics acknowledge, and his 
 authority in civil matters, which they renounce. But, there 
 is such a connection between authority in spiritual matters and 
 in c/r/V, that I apprehend some degree of civil authority may 
 indirectly arise out of the spiritual supremacy ; insomuch that 
 the conscientious Roman Catholic may sometimes find himself 
 hampered between his acknowledgment and his renunciation.'* 
 I'he next striking remarks upon this subject were delivered 
 by some nobleman, whose name 1 have not discovered. 
 
 " Before we proceed to grant more, (if more we could grant 
 without a direct surrender of all securities of our Protestant 
 Church and Government,) it would well become us to consider 
 how our past liberality and confidence have been requited. 
 
 But we cannot grant more, particularly the boon which is asked 
 of the admission of Catholic members into Parliament, with- 
 out putting in peril the whole Protestant Church, and its rights, 
 as by law established. 
 
 *" The Act of Settlement has provided for the Protestant suc- 
 cession to the crown of England ; it has made the being a Pro- 
 testant the indispensable condition upon which the crown is 
 to be worn, by any prince claiming under the limitation in fa- 
 vour of the heirs of the body of Princess Sophia, " being Pro- 
 testants,^* 
 
 " It has not only required the King to be a Protestant gene- 
 rally, but to be of that class of Protestants which joins in com,- 
 munion with the Church of England; and ithasexcluded Papists 
 by industrious description : for it provides and enacts (section 
 ^) thai all and every person and persons who shall or may take 
 or inherit the said crown, by virtue of the limitation of the 
 present act, and is or shall be reconciled to, or shall hold com- 
 munion with, the See or Church of Rome, or shall profess the 
 Popish religion, or shall marry a Papist, shall be subject to such 
 incapacities, as in such case or cases are by the recited act [i .e. 
 of 1 W. and M.) enacted and established. 
 
 " So peremptory is the tenor of these provisions in exclusion 
 of a Popish prince from the throne of these kingdoms, that if 
 (a case which is scarce within the extreme limits of actual pos- 
 sibility) his Majesty himself should become reconciled to the 
 See of Rome, or profess the Popish religion, the crown w ould, 
 in that case, by the instantaneous effect and operation of law, 
 fall from his august and revered brows, and he would stand 
 amongst us a mere unprivileged individual, as wholly divested 
 of the rights, functions, name and character of sovereignty, as 
 the meanest peasant of the land. Can it then be supposed, 
 that when such industrious pains have been taken by our an- 
 cestors, to secure to the kingdom a Protestant prince, that it 
 should be left at large whether his Parliament should be Pro- 
 testant or Papist ? But this was already provided for by the 
 test acts in the reign of Charles 11. which shut the doors of Par- 
 liament in both Houses, on persons who do not take the oaths oj 
 
 
I> 
 
 A 
 
 
 5 ! 
 
 K ' 
 
 178 
 
 STRONG tlEASONS AOAINtT 
 
 allegiance and supremacy, and subscribe the declaration against 
 Popery. 
 
 '* These restrictions on the parliamentary function and cha- 
 racter it is now proposed to repeal ; and thus the King may be 
 surrounded, not only by ministers of opposite and conflictfng 
 religions, but may find, in the same persons, a divided and dis- 
 tracted allegiance between his rights, as their temporal sooereign, 
 and the rights spiritual and ecclesiastical of the Roman pon- 
 tiff. 
 
 " It is obvious to the most careless observer, that the measures 
 of Government would be enormously clogged and impeded by 
 the close junction and mutual adherence of the Catholic 
 members, amounting, in the aggregate, to a number m Eng- 
 land and Ireland, sufficiently lar^ic to enforce from a minister, 
 a degree of condescension and deference to their demands, in 
 favour of the Roman Catholic reli^^ion, by which the Protes- 
 tant religion might be undermined and cniangered. 
 
 " But if Roman Catiioiic iiiciubeis are to liave seats in Par- 
 liament, there must be also vested in them a capacity of be- 
 coming, as well as others, the King's minisiMs- i\.A if his 
 ministers are to be taken out of the body ol ( • ioaes, of what 
 avail will it be, that we have secured to us, by the act of stt- 
 tlement and the coronation oath, the solitary uidividual Fro^ 
 testantism of his Majesty? So that, at the lust, tli .ole 
 substance of the provision, made with so much anxit:^ AWii 
 solemnity by our Protestant ancestors, will become eni; -y 
 futile and elusory ; for the test acts which preceded the a^. ;f 
 settlement, and were the foundation on which alone it coild 
 practically rest, must of course be done away, before the 
 Catholic members can take their seats in either House ; the 
 removal of which tests will certainly, on principle, and by 
 probable, if not necessary influence, in point of fact, ef- 
 fectuate a total subversion of the Protestant Church as estab- 
 lished by law within these realms. It will scarce be denied 
 by any of those, upon the credit of whose assertions your lord- 
 ships would be disposed to place reliance, that the real aim 
 and object of the persons who so strenuously contend for con- 
 
 THK CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 177 
 
 ferring a representative capacity on Roman Catholics, is, 
 through the means of such representatives, to procure for the 
 body at large some further advantages in the way of a recog- 
 nized Church Establishment, under the immediate authority of 
 Parliament. Upon this head, waving, for the present, all ob- 
 jections whatever to the religious faith and doctrines of that 
 Church, and supposing, (which I by no means admit,) that 
 the points of faith and doctrine in which our Church differs 
 from theirs, are of less essential practical importance as affect- 
 ing moral conduct than they appear to me to be; allowing 
 them to entertain, and as publicly as they please to profess 
 a belief in transubstantiation and in purgatory, to practise the 
 invocation of saints, and to hold and inculcate the belief of 
 (what Protestants consider as) a legendary chronicle of authen- 
 tic * miracles ; giving them all facilities of public and private 
 worship, and profession of faith on these and every other sub- 
 ject, if there be any yet wanting and required on their behalf; 
 still an establishment for their Church, concurrent with that 
 of the United Church of England and Ireland, exceeds even 
 the comi)etence of Parliament itself, constituted as it is, to 
 bestow. By the 5th article of the Union, it is declared, that 
 *' the continuance and preservation of tlie said United Church 
 as the Established Church of England and Ireland, shall be 
 deemed and taken to be an essential and fundamental part of 
 the Union.** By fundamental is meant, with reference to the 
 subject matter, such an integral part of the compact of union 
 formed between the two kingdoms, as is absolutely necessary 
 to the support and sustaining of the whole fabric and super- 
 structure of the Union raised and built thereupon : and such as, 
 being removed, would produce the ruin and overthrow of the 
 political Union founded upon this article as its immediate 
 basis. The words " the Established Church'* import that 
 there shall be only one Church of that description, and which 
 shall alone have the privileges, character, and denomination of 
 
 * See some of these in the Appendix to Stockdale's History 
 pf the Inquisitions, 1810. 
 
■fi :■ 
 
 178 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 179 
 
 ji 1 
 
 ■1^ 
 
 an Established Church annexed to it. These terms necessarily 
 exclude any other co-ordinate and concurrent establishment; 
 every other Church which has any thing beyond what we 
 commonly understand by the word toleration allowed to it, 
 may be considered as so far established within the meaning of 
 this aiticle ; and the Union, of course, in virtue of such allowed 
 establishment, not only to a degree impugned and violated, 
 but by the express letter of the precise and peremptoiy pro- 
 vision referred to, absolutely deprived of its very essence and 
 foundation ; in other words, substantially destroyed and sub- 
 verted. I will hope, therefore, that on further consideration 
 the utter impracticability of such a project, consistently with 
 the good foith of the two kingdoms solemnly pledged to each 
 other at the period, and by the compact, of the Union, will be 
 so apparent to all who are at present striving for its adoption, 
 as to dissuade them from the further prosecution of a measure 
 which, as it must commence in a violation of public faith 
 and political rights, must also terminate in disappointment 
 and dishonour. 
 
 " I am one of those, my Lords, who labour under an unfor- 
 tunate persuasion that even if this could legally be, and in fact 
 were granted to them; that if the Roman Catholic religion 
 were already established in Ireland, in some degree of com- 
 munion and participation of privileges with the United Church, 
 even this grant and indulgence, large as it might now appear 
 to us, would be followed by fresh demands and increased 
 importunity. What assurance is there that they would rest 
 contented with this boon ? or would not the broad banners 
 of Papal Supremacy be immediately unfurled, and the exclu- 
 sive domination of the Romisb Church in Ireland be autho- 
 ritatively claimed on the ground of this very concession, and 
 of that majority in the population of that country, which 
 alone confers the right (as they contend) of establishing the 
 Protestant religion as the religion of the State in this coun- 
 try? Compared with the value of this ultimate prize, the 
 objects hitherto obtained in the struggle, would be vile and 
 worthless in their estimation. 
 
 Jam tenet Italiam, tamen ultra pergere tendit 
 Actum inquit nihil est, nisi poeno milite portas 
 Franginius et medik vexillum pono suburrX 
 
 «* Before it is yet too late, I for one am disposed to rally 
 round the standards, and to presei*ve the altars, of my coun- 
 tiy. The palladium of our Protestant, and indeed of our 
 political security, consists principally in the oath of supre- 
 macy, and the tests connected therewith, and (as more parti- 
 cularly concerns Ireland) in the provisions contained in the 
 6th article of our recent Union with that country, against 
 every attempt to weaken these safeguards of the Constitution. 
 I, as long as I live, and am furnished with faculties either of body 
 or mind, enabling me to struggle with effect, will manfull} 
 struggle, and, as far in me lies, will avert the mischief which 
 must result from the admission of persons (owning and yield- 
 ing, as they do, an imperfect and defalcated allegiance to the 
 State,) mto the entire and perfect rights of completely affi- 
 anced subjects. 
 
 " Not being able, my Lords, to feel any material degree of 
 evil in the present state of political restraint, as it is necessarily 
 for their good as well as ours, and in the prevention of com- 
 mon calamities affecting us all, applied to our Roman Catho- 
 lic brethren in Ireland ; and seeing a sure prospect of enor- 
 mous and incalculable mischiefs before me, which must 
 immediately result from a change :— as a subject, interested 
 in the safety of the crown and kingdom ; as a Protestant, in- 
 terested in maintaining the possession of that pure and 
 reformed religion, which (having been in times past preserved 
 and sanctified to us by the blood of our ancestors) has been, 
 by God*8 providence, long and firmly established in these 
 realms, and which is inseparably knit together in one system 
 with all our civil rights and liberties, with our best means of 
 happiness here, and our best hopes of happiness hereafter ; 
 I feel it my duty, my Lords, now and for ever, as long as the 
 Catholic religion shall maintain its ecclesiastical and spiritual 
 union with, and dependence upon the See of Rome, to resist, 
 to the utmost of my power, this and every other proposition 
 
 
L( 
 
 
 IM» 
 
 180 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 which is calculated to produce the undoing and overthrow of 
 all that our fathers have regarded, and ourselves hare felt 
 and know to be most venerable and useful in our Establish- 
 ments, both in Church and State." 
 
 And now I beg leave, particularly, to draw the attention 
 of those who are well aflected to the present royal family, 
 to the animated and judicious otigervations of the Duke of 
 Cumberland. — ** After the very able manner in which the 
 Secretary of State has expiamed to this House, reasons 
 which, I trust, will induce you to reject the claims of the 
 Catholics, it will not be necessary for me to enter ditfusely 
 into this question. But when I reflect on what the circum- 
 stances were which brought our family to the throne, and when 
 I consider what is the object of that Petition on your table, 
 it is impossible for me to remain totally silent. With respect 
 to the circumstances which brought our family to the British 
 throne, your lordships well know that they originated in the 
 Revolution. The great object of that Revolution was to se- 
 cure the religion and liberties of these realms. These- objects 
 were conlirmed by the Act of Settlement ^ by the Declaration of 
 Rights, by the Oath of Supremacy and Abjuration, and by the 
 succession to the Crown in the Protestant line. To maintain and 
 uphold all these, our family was called to the throne. And 
 whatever can militate with these principles, in the remotest 
 degree, it is my bounden duty, as a member of that family, 
 and as a member of your Lordships' House, to resist. For this 
 purpose, I must ask. What is the object of that Petition ? It 
 is to enable the Catholics to hold offices of trust and power in 
 the State. Was it not to oppose such a system that the Revo- 
 lution originated ? Was it not the very life and soul of that 
 memorable transaction to secure the rights of Church and 
 State ? Are we then, my Lords, going to undo all the Revolu- 
 tion has done ? Bear in mind, my Lords, the scenes which 
 preceded the Revolution ; they are strong proofs that the par- 
 ticipation of equal power by Catholics and Protestants, is a 
 thing incompatible with the principles of both. Are you not 
 already convinced, by facts and history, that it is impossible 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 181 
 
 for Protestants and Catholics to agree in the administration of 
 political power ? What then will follow if the Catholics be 
 admitted to the great offices of trust ? You will soon see what; 
 — thank God, till now we have only read : we shall experience 
 the same confusion and bloodshed which stained all the reigns 
 from Mary, who began with granting them a dispensing power 
 to hold offices of State, down to James, who ended with the dis- 
 pensing power in their favour. He hurled himself from the 
 throne by conferring on them offices of trust and power, which 
 afterwards drew down on them all the weight of penal laws : 
 I am justified, therefore, in concluding, that there can be no 
 boon more fraught with mischief to King and subjects, con- 
 ferred, than that prayed for in this Petition. Not only, how- 
 ever, the awful experience of past times, but the temper of the 
 present times call upon us to pause, and to listen to the voice 
 of the two great capitals of the empire, and of different coun- 
 ties in the United Kingdom against this Petition. We know, 
 my Lords, what are the feelings and sentiments of this nation 
 with respect to the causes and consequences of the Revolution* 
 The memory of it is kept alive daily by the most solemn acts 
 when men are called to undertake public and corporate func- 
 tions. His Majesty's subjects on such occasions swear to pre- 
 serve his supremacy in ecclesiastical and civil matters. Does 
 that Petition acknowledge that supremacy in ecclesiastical 
 matters ? No ! If then you surrender the power of the State 
 to those who deny that supremacy, you do not maintain that 
 supremacy, you virtually surrender it. Far be it from me, my 
 Lords, to shackle or to fetter the consciences of any men : but 
 equally far be it from me, to pull down, by rash innovation, 
 any of the venerable pillars of the Constitution. All that can 
 be given, consistently with reason and conscience, I am prompt 
 to give. But the Constitution I cannot, dare not, will not 
 give. I must uphold and support, with the last eflbrt of my 
 nature, the Establislunent in Church and State, as the great 
 step by which the House of Brunswick ascended that throne." 
 From the foregoing reasoning of several high characters in 
 
182 
 
 STRONG EEASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 183 
 
 
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 the Senate, it must be manifest, that innovations in a State 
 (which has been formed by wise and sound policy, and which 
 long experience has taught us to approve) are always danger- 
 ous. If, therefore, any unusual liberty be demanded, upoft 
 which foniier restraints were thought necessary, it should always 
 be extended with that degree of jealousy and circumspection, 
 which may enable us to guard against the abuse of it, and which 
 may prevent its being made the instrument to destroy the very 
 Government, for whose protection and support it was alone 
 created. 
 
 1 am ready to admit, that no laws can be considered as 
 perpetual, and that there must exist, in every state, a power 
 somewhere, to revise, to modify, and even to abrogate the 
 laws of the state, according as circumstances may render it 
 necessary : but it has been the practice of every wise govern- 
 ment to adopt certain elementary and fundamental laws, 
 which might become a kind of landmark between the gover- 
 nors and the governed, and which, though they might be 
 made the subject of revision and even of alteration, should 
 not be changed, except on the strongest grounds, and on 
 the most urgent necessity. The principles of the Revolution, 
 as established by the Bill of Rights 2Lnd Act of Settlement, hsx^ 
 always been considered of this description. It is one of the 
 fundamental principles of these laws, that the King must be 
 Frotestant, and must hold communion with the Church of Eng- 
 land. The conduct of our ancestors at the Revolution, has 
 been a subject of admiration to all wise men and true patriots. 
 The pereons who brought about that glorious event were sen- 
 sible of all the advantages of hereditary monarchy ; they 
 determined to depart no further from the strict line of succes- 
 sion, than the necessity of the case and the nature of the 
 circumstances rendered indispensable: but hi their prospective 
 settlement of the Constitution, as well as in their remedy of 
 existing grievances, they had the courage and tbrtitude to con- 
 sider the situation of the country in all its different contingen- 
 cies. They put the question to themselves, whether the 
 
 inconvenience arising from having a king of a religion different 
 from that which was established in the country, or the evil 
 of breaking in upon the order of succession, were the 
 greater : and, with all their attachment to hereditary monarchy, 
 they determined, that it was more expedient to break in upon 
 the hue of succession, tlian to risk the consequences which 
 might result from having a sovereign of a religion different 
 from that of the kiiigdom. This law was not founded 
 upon any speculative principles, nor decreed from any idea 
 of imaginary grievances; but was the result of experience, 
 and grew out of the evils which had been actually felt under a 
 king who was of a religion hostile to that which was established 
 in the State. 
 
 Now, it follows, as a necessary consequence of the limita- 
 tion of the crown to persons of the Established Religion, 
 that the same principle should apply to tlie immediate 
 advisers, counsellors, and oflicers of the Crown, — to those 
 who dispense the favours of the Crown, who are in some 
 instances actually the delegates of the Crown, and who 
 nmst act in its name, and b}'^ its authority. There maybe 
 shades of opinion as to the extent to which it may be 
 expedient to apply this principle ; but that it is true to a 
 <?ertain extent, and in a certain degree, must appear incon- 
 trovertible ; for what could be more preposterous than, 
 in a government of law, where the law is above the Crown, 
 to compel the King, under pain of forfeiture, to be of the 
 Established Church, and to allow the Ministers, the Chancellor, 
 the Judges of the land, to be of any religion the most hostile 
 to the Establishment ? 
 
 There is some reason to believe, that most of the Dissenters 
 (collectively considered) are favourable to the Roman Catho- 
 lic claims, upon this principle; that, if these claims should 
 be acceded to, they themselves will be released from all the 
 impediments in their way to civil power, honour, and emolu- 
 ment. If the Catholics, without taking the oath of supremacy/, 
 be admitted to seats in Parliament, and all the privileges which 
 
184 
 
 fiTAONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 1S5 
 
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 Protestants of the Established Church enjoy, the Dissenters 
 will then naturally demand (and with great reason too) the 
 removal of all the restrictions imposed upon them, by the 
 Corporation and Test acts, the origin of which I shall now con- 
 sider.— The Commons of England, in the reign of Charles 
 II, had conceived very strong suspicions of the arbitrary in- 
 tentions of the King and his ministers. They were therefore 
 determined to secure their religion, by an act of Parliament. 
 Accordingly, they passed two laws, for imposing tests on all 
 those who should enjoy any public employment. These acts, 
 usually called the CorporationsaidTest acts, require (among other 
 things) that the Sacrament shall be received in the Established 
 Church, besides taking the oaths of allegiance and supremacy. 
 So that the test-laws were originally enacted to defend the 
 Established Religion and Government, by excluding the 
 Catholics from Parliament and public offices. And, at the 
 Revolution, the Parliament considered the continuance and 
 ratification of these test-acts, as necessary to the preservation 
 of the Constitution in Church and State. 
 
 The great end, then, of the test is to exclude all Non-Con- 
 formists from civil and military- olhces : for our Constitution 
 knows of no friends to the Established Government, who are 
 not well affected to our ecclesiastical polity. 
 
 I need not rake in the ashes of the dead upon this occasion. 
 For it is too well known, what fate the Church of England 
 undei-went, when the struggles of the Sectarists for power 
 succeeded to their wishes. 
 
 Some test then being necessary-, what could be a more 
 proper one than that sacred institution, which is the most 
 solemn evidence of being in charity at least with the Church of 
 England, which hath always distinguished herself, above all 
 others, by her ready submission to the secular power; and 
 whose members, for that reason, are better disposed and qua- 
 lified than any other persons, to assist the civil magistrate, in 
 the due administration of the affairs of State. 
 
 Let us now, on one hand, suppose (what simplicity itself 
 
 can hardly suppose) a possibility, that the application for the 
 repeal of the Test-acts proceeds from a principle of natural, 
 or national right only. Let us, on the other hand, imagine 
 (what indeed is obvious to common apprehension) a possibility, 
 that these violent struggles arise IVom ambitions and selfish 
 v4ews. If the possibility, on either side, is equal, I leave it 
 with the judgment of every intelligent person to determine, 
 what line of conduct the Legislature ought to pursue : especi- 
 ally as we have, for above a century, experienced the happy 
 and beneficial effects of these hu\-s, which Catholics and Dis- 
 senters of all persuasions would have us lay aside. 
 
 I believe there are few instances (if any) of peisoiis, whose 
 religion is of the republican cast, who are favourers of monar- 
 chy. It is therefore to be presumed that our gracious Sovereign, 
 by virtue of his royal authority, will render ineffectual all their 
 machinations — but more especially those of the Catholics, 
 which are aimed not only against the State, but \\Ai\\ peculiar 
 enmity against the Chunk, 
 
 Should we be disposed to yield to the plausible it presenta- 
 tions of the Petitioners, and sufier ourselves to be carried away 
 with the passionate and vehement oratory of public incendia- 
 ries, in favour of the repeal of all the tests, designed to secure 
 our Constitution,* (which is the admiration of most foreign 
 countries,) it would require no great share of political prophecy, 
 to foretel the dismal consequences. I should, by no means, 
 be surprised to see the House of Commons shortly filled with 
 persons of levelling principles. Soon would the barrier be 
 broken down, which guards both Church and State. Every 
 true friend to the Church now justly glories in the superior ex- 
 cellence of our ecclesiastical system : but then, perhaps, our 
 pious, decent and rational form of worship v/ould be ex- 
 changed, under the ensnaring pretence of a purer reformation, 
 but with a real design of appropriating its emoluments. And 
 if we may venture a conjecture from past experience, it is more 
 than probable that we should not be allowed even the benefit 
 of a toleration. And the same inundation which would over- 
 whelm the Church, would also bear down the throne, and the 
 
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 STltONG REASON? AGAINST 
 
 TH£ CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 187 
 
 body of our nobles. Imaginary grievances would be held out 
 to the multitude, in order to animate them to prefer petitions 
 to the Crown, which it could not grant consistently with its 
 own safety. Hence sedition, havoc and desolation would en- 
 compass us on every side. The Monarchy and House of Lords 
 would fall a sacrifice to irresistible violence. Then should we 
 be punished with the heaviest judgment which Heaven, in its 
 wrath, ever inflicted upon an unhappy people : I mean, a ty- 
 rannical congress. And all this would conclude in the usurpa- 
 tion of some single arch-rebel. 
 
 Thus would the bravest and freest people that exist upon the 
 face of the globe be reduced to the most abject slavery, and be 
 entirely at the mercy of a military banditti. This is not a mat- 
 ter of mere speculation. Experience warrants the suggestion. 
 For the same causes will ever produce the same effects. 
 
 Against Catholic plots it becomes us to be more particularly 
 on our guard ; for if they succeed, how would that persecuting 
 Church lord it over God's Protestant heritage/ Behold ! con- 
 science bound in chains, and our religious liberties in fetters of 
 iron ! Arbitrary power exulting in passive obedience ! The 
 throne of a merciless tyrant, exalted upon the ruins of our mild 
 monarchs ! Behold! a mock St. Peter, with his triple crown, 
 his indulgences, and all his ridiculous mummeries, triumphing 
 over the decent rites and usages of our Established Church ! — 
 Let us draw a veil over the picture, for it is too frightful to look 
 
 upon ! 
 
 If then we would avoid the calamities I have suggested, and 
 preserve the Constitution inviolate, let us give no countenance 
 to those who discover too great a fondness to make alterations 
 in it. It is a scriptural apothegm. Fear thou the Lord, and 
 the King; and meddle not tcith them that are given to change. 
 Prov. xxiv, 21. Our political system has been held sacred, ever 
 since the Revolution at least ; and the bounds of the King's 
 prerogatives, and the people's liberties, have been defined, as 
 well as circumstances would allow. We are governed by laws 
 of our own enacting — they only receive a confirmation from the 
 throne. And shall we give up this privilege, together with 
 
 good Oider, public peace and liberty, for anarchy, confusipn, 
 and tyranny ? God forbid ! 
 
 In the course of the Parliamentary debates o» the Catholic 
 cause, Mr. Fox urged " the propriety of separating political from 
 religious establishments." But, in answer to this obser^^ation. 
 Sir William Scott said, that ** he should quote the authority of 
 Mr. Burke, who stated, tteit * the connection between Church 
 and State was the foundation of the Constitution, and was in- 
 separable.* At the Reformation, the civil and religious Es- 
 tablishments were consolidated. To our ancestors we owed 
 the blessings we enjoyed. In the same charter in which the 
 title of the reigning family was recognised, it was decreed, 
 that the Government, as far as any human provision could be 
 permanent, should be for ever Protestant. This had been the 
 prayer of our ancestors, and he trusted it would long be the 
 prayer of the inhabitants of this country. This had been the . 
 legacy of our forefathers, and our own acquisition, which had 
 insured to us freedoni both of Church and State. Every thing 
 which connected the King with his subjects was founded on a 
 Protestant basis. The King was to be a Protestant, to marry 
 none but a Protestant, and all who were to exercise the dele- 
 gated powers of the Crown were required to be Protestants. The 
 prayer of the present Petition could not be granted without a 
 surrender of the Constitution. The case of a Protestant Prince 
 surrounded by Catholic Counsellors, for the purpose of carry- 
 ing on a Protestant government, was as impossible to exist in 
 fact, as in law. The Catholics would have, in that case, a 
 civil and a religious duty, drawing them in diti'erent directions ; 
 and it is very natural to conclude they would be disposed to 
 le^n to the latter, or that they would be unfit persons to watch 
 ever the Church Establishment of the State." 
 
 But further, the same honourable gentleman (Mr. Fox) told 
 the Mouse, that ** there was no danger in a State's having its 
 Counsellors or Ministers of a diflcrcnt religion," and he in- 
 stanced Sully and Neckar in France. But it should be con- 
 sidered that they were Frotestants, and did not acknowledge 
 Ike authority of vl foreign power within the realm, which a 
 
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188 
 
 fcTRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIM?. 
 
 189 
 
 
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 Catholic does ; nor had they the larger portion in the conunu^ 
 nity of their own persuasion, to support them in any innova- 
 tions, which their religious tenets might urge them to ulteiiipt. 
 A Popish State may, with some degree of safety at least, trust 
 a, Protestant at the heim, for he acknowledges its stfprouacii ; 
 but a Protestant nation cannot, with the same security, take a 
 Catholic who denies it. • 
 
 Mr. Fox likewise adduced Venice as an instance, where hotli 
 religions equally managed the State. But surely he could not 
 be serious in olfering us such a model, or quoting her as an 
 example? Venice, where is she now ? No longer a nation ! 
 but sunk and lost to the workl, after all her pride for cen- 
 turies ! And her fall, perhaps, accelerated, by that very mix- 
 ture of religious power, whieh he recommended. 
 
 Let us now, for a moment, imagine that we see our Protes- 
 tant King surrounded by Popish Counsellors; and (if not in 
 England, yet at least in Ireland) eveiy measure of his Govern- 
 ment carried into execution by Popish Ministers, and justice 
 dispensed to the people by Popish Judges: that is to say, 
 by men who are taught to consider their king as an usurper , 
 and, in consequence of t\^at usurpation, as well as his religious 
 opinions, involved in errors which must doom him to everlasting' 
 misery. 
 
 It is a fundamental maxim in our Constitution, that the 
 King by himself can do nothing; that he must in every 
 thing act by the hands and upon the suggt^stion of others, 
 who are responsible botli for the advice and the act. The 
 appointment of Popish ministers does, therefore, in fact, 
 make a Popish Government. It will become folly to talk 
 of this as a Protestant country. We know how often our 
 Sovereigns have been constrained to take Ministers whom 
 they disliked, to sanction measures which they personally 
 disapproved: and, indeed, would not the change of the, law 
 contended for, itself be the strongest instance possible of such 
 a force ? If, on this point, the Sovereign be compelled to yield, 
 where shall he make his stand ? 
 
 Besides — The introduction into Parliament and the cabinet. 
 
 of a certain number of the Catholics, heading, and acting 
 as the organ of the Catholic people, might produce other 
 dismal elfects. Divisions might arise among the Protes- 
 tants, and a misguided Monarch might attempt to obtain 
 powers, incompatible with the safety of our Church and 
 State, by the aid and support of the Catholic interest, in 
 both Houses. Such vieWs were imputed to Charles I — such 
 conduct was certainly adopted by James II — and of that 
 ill-judged elFort we only escaped the fatal consequences, by 
 placing the present royal family on the throne. 
 
 Many of the advocates for the Catholic Petition boast much 
 of their wealth, fairly and honourably acquired under our mild 
 and equal laws. Honours (they say) have been conferred on 
 them by the Crown, or restored to their most distinguished 
 families — and they affirm, that the absence of jealousy, and 
 the consciousness of our superior constitutional strength, 
 justified our monarch in conferring these favours, and the 
 Protestant people in rejoicing at their attainment. 
 
 But great States are distinguished by the wisdom of their 
 precautionary iwe^suxQ^. Accordingly, the wisdom of British 
 policy has led its Councils to protect the Crown from temp- 
 tation, and to guard the conduct of the monarch against the 
 elfects of his passions and his w^ishes, by withholding the 
 instruments by which our Constitution in Church and State 
 might be assailed and subverted. Should a British monarch 
 entertain such views, the manufacturing and preparing in- 
 struments v.ould alarm the jealousy, and enable the w^ealth 
 an«l independence of the empire to rise, in defence of its civil 
 and religious ' liberties. As far as the feelings of the Crown 
 itself may be concerned, we nmst consider how cruel it would 
 be to render the exclus-on of such a description of subjects 
 from his Councils, and the higher offices of State, a matter of 
 personal objection, antl, consequently, of personal odium 
 against the monarch himself. The Catholics surely expect 
 that the capability whu^h they now wish^to obtain should be 
 productive of its effects. At present no individual can feel, 
 in his exclusion from power, a personal degradation ; he mast 
 
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 STUONO REASON* AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
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 attribute it to existing laws, and to the existing Constitution 
 Give them capability, and then do not confer upon a great 
 proportion that share in the cabinet and the councils of the 
 Crown, which they fancy their boasted numbers and wealth 
 entitle them to, and will you conciliate a single individual ? 
 Will not discontent be more formidable than it is at present ? 
 On the other hand, what would be the sentiments and the 
 sensations of the people of this empire, were they to see a Pro-^ 
 testant monarch, whose tenure to his throne depends upon his 
 fidelity to his religion, surrounded by Catholic counsellors ? 
 Could any circumstances reconcile them to such a choice in the 
 monarch himself? And should the strength of parties (as it is 
 sometimes supposed to have done) force such minister and such 
 counsellors upon the throne, how miserable, how degraded 
 must be the situation of our monarch, and how precarious 
 the state of our religion, and of our civil liberties ! 
 
 In such a case, let us now suppose (what surely is not im- 
 possible) a Popish rebellion in Ireland. Suppose only partial 
 risino's or dis3ft'«^rt»or!P — what will be the situation of Govern- 
 ment ? But iet mc go iuiciier, and suppose, that the men who 
 have now jJioiaised to maintain the rif'-ht*^ oi the' Protestant 
 Established Church shodd chans;e thesf uiiud, and cau ^or 
 the re-establishment of the Popish religion ? They spare not 
 to tell us that it was the religion of our ancestors ; and they 
 may go on to say, as they must thmk, ttiat it was a sin to 
 depart from it ; and they may act hi consequence. But ad- 
 mitting that this generation will be faithtul to their enrage- 
 ments, may not another start up which has made no such 
 professions, and which may feel themselves bound in con- 
 science to obey the mandate of a future Pope, and set about 
 converting us by lire, and by the sword ? 
 
 They must in truth so act, if they be sincere Roman Ca- 
 tholics: it is the natural course of their tenets; and what is 
 to sruard us a<:ainst their most baleful etlects, in the case of a 
 religion which makes it a crime in its members to search 
 the Scriptures for information respecting the truth, or the 
 grounds of their faith? — which does not even allow its priests 
 
 to read books of controversy, without a special licence from 
 their bishop ? — which lays its very foundation m the igno- 
 rance of the laity ? 
 
 I will not insist upon extreme cases : but surely it cannot 
 be supposed but that there must arise, in a kingdom like this, 
 questions of a religious nature, or differences connected with 
 religion. It is impossible that these should not be fomented 
 and encouraged by the Pope. Whatever be the feelings of 
 the Roman Catholics, he will not lay aside the hope of seeitig 
 his supremacy re-established: and though this once great 
 potentate is now sunk very low, his degraded situation will 
 only serve as a stimulus to the utmost exertions, for the reco- 
 very of his lost dignity and dominion. 
 
 In these, or in any other instances, where the interests of 
 religion and of the different communions may be concerned, 
 how is the Protestant King to be advised by his Popish cabi- 
 net? How is the Constitution in Church and State to be 
 maintained ? 
 
 What are we to think further of a Popish chancellor, and 
 a Popish prime minister, disposing of all the dignities in the 
 Church, and of the cure of souls, in such a large proportion 
 of our parishes? 
 
 We may well say, indeed, that human nature is short- 
 sighted ; for, at the time when the Act of Settlement was 
 passed, when it was made a condition indispensable of sue- ' 
 ceeding to the Crown, that the wearer of it should not be a 
 Papist, nor married to a Papist, had it been asked in that 
 Parliament, *' Do you mean that, at any future time, he shall 
 be allowed a Popish council or Popish ministers," what would 
 their answer have been ? Would they not have said, " Do 
 you think us mad ? or shall we suppose that they who come 
 after us will be deprived of common understanding ? How 
 can it be supposed, that a Protestant King and a Protestant 
 Parliament, should throw down the fences which we have 
 established, should invite the danger, which we have re- 
 moved to such a distance?" — I will venture to say, that even 
 
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19-2 
 
 bTRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 193 
 
 
 
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 the present situation of the Roman Catholics would not have 
 been thought credible only fifty years ago. 
 
 But this is not all; for if the Petition be granted, are we 
 secure that the Act of Setthment itself will be sutVered to 
 stand ? In the same manner that the Petitioners argue, from 
 the possession of the elective franchise, to tlie obtaining of 
 the representative ; why may they not argue from the having 
 a Popish Cabinet, to the having a Popish Kino? \ have 
 shewn, I think, that the one is at least as formidable to the 
 liberties and lights of a Protestant Church and State as the 
 other. I am putting the case, not as what can actually lake 
 place in the lives of the royal family under whose reign we 
 hve, pr whom we have in actual contemplation ; not as wliat 
 they would listen to; but as what may become the object 
 of a future application to Parliament, or what might serve 
 as a pretext for future discontents. 
 
 The Petitioners tell us, that " their hopes of enjoying even 
 the privileges which they have been capacitated to enjoy, are 
 nearly altogether frustrated," because they are shut out from 
 the Parliament, and the great oihces of State. Now, may 
 they not hereafter, with just as much colour, argue, that their 
 having a capacity to be appointed to these offices is of no 
 avail, while there can be none but a Protestant King upon 
 the throne ? That such a one must naturally choose 
 to have all his ministers of his own persuasion ? Will not 
 the same complaint of '* Exclusion, humiliation, reproach 
 and suspicion," apply to that case also ? And, surely, the 
 Parliament which has been either weak enough, or mistaken 
 enough to yield in the one case, will hardly be expected to 
 hold out in the other. * 
 
 But, indeed, there is another topic in the Petition which 
 seems directly to point that way. These Petitiotiers all at 
 once constitute themselves the advocates of their oppressed 
 ai)d injured Sovereign ; they tell us that tliese incapacities 
 which they complain of are " impolitic! restraints upon his 
 Majesty's prerogative." How much more easy and naturril 
 
 will it be to say of the Act of Settlement, that it is a cruel 
 and impious restraint upon his Majesty's conscience ? And 
 that the repeal of it, by conciliating all the Roman Catho- 
 lics, in the kingdom, will prodigiously contribute to ** the 
 perfect security of every establishment, religious or political, 
 now existing in this realm r" 
 
 I solenmly protest, that I do not think that I am stating 
 either an imaginary danger, or putting it in an unfair light. 
 It must be the wish of every sincere and honest Roman Ca- 
 tholic to reconcile his allegiance to the King, with his obe- 
 dience to the Pope : this can only (or, at least, best) be done, 
 by the King becoming a Roman Catholic ; it must be there- 
 fore a " consummation," " most devoutly to be wished," 
 by them. Formerly, it was an event which could not even 
 enter into their contemplation; but as their hopes have suc- 
 cessively heen raised and gratified, it is become ditficult to say 
 to what they may not extend. Certain it is, that every con- 
 cessicyn granted, has only brought them nearer to the ultimate 
 object which they may have in view. It is certain, also, that 
 it is in the nature of man to rise in his demands, whenever 
 he sees a disposition to yield to them, and to increase his pre- 
 tensions, in proportion to his means, either real or imagined. 
 
 Can we, then, be so infatuated, as to entertain lor a mo- 
 ment, the idea of calling on Catholic members to make the 
 laws on which both Church and State depend, and on Ca- 
 tholic counsellors to execute them ? Should I even allow the 
 Catholics every merit which men can claim, still, the feelings 
 incidental to human nature, would debar them from being 
 able to niake such laws, as those who profess the Established 
 Religion of this country are bound to do. 
 
 It is no wonder, therefore, that the Catholic Petitioners 
 should iind it " painful to their feelings" to take " the oath 
 of supremacy ;" or that tliey should intimate a strong desire to 
 be relieved from the obligation of taking any oath at all. For, 
 y. hat oath can be framed, which will not, somehow or other, 
 interfere with the tenets still maintained by the Head of their 
 
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 I 
 
194 
 
 bJR0N9 RhASOHB AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
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 Church ? What oath which will not have the appearance at 
 least of a partial renunciation of their faith ? 
 
 Are there not many sturdy Catliolics, who, like Dr. Troy, 
 and Mr. Plowden, insist that their Church remains what it 
 always was ? " Semper eadem." Will these gentlemen tell 
 us, whether they admit the Councils of Thoulouse, of the 
 4th Lateran, of Constance, to be real and true Councils? 
 And will they then tell us, iiow they reconcile it to their 
 conscience, to bear any kind of allegiance to a Protestant 
 King? 
 
 As the Romish Church is constituted, I must insist, it is 
 impossible that the members of it can, with any safety, be ad- 
 mitted to any share in the government of a Protestant State. 
 They themselves ought not to wish it ; for if they be honest 
 men, it must be a snare to their consciences. I say this more 
 particularly of a State like ours, where a Prince is so much in 
 the hands of his ministers. I say it of a country like Ireland, 
 where the hopes of re-establishing Papal dominion are not 
 extinct. In truth, a Roman Catholic is hardly a free agent: 
 he is so much in the hands of his spiritual guides, that he 
 cannot depend upon himself; he is liable to be attacked in 
 so many ways, that he cannot be sure of being able to persist 
 to the end, in what he deems to be right. 
 
 Surely, then, the man who cannot conscientiously support 
 every part of the Established Government, should not repine, 
 if he be excluded from the administration of it. If he have 
 protection, if justice be equally dealt to him as to all other 
 subjects, if he erjoy toleration in its fullest extent, has he a 
 right to complain? 
 
 One of the Lords in Parliaments, when the Catholic question 
 was first debated on, expressed himself thus. 
 
 " I venture to encourage the confident expectation, that 
 from the Union will ultimately arise a state of order and 
 industrious exertion, which will produce more real and 
 lasting welfare to this people, than all the imaginary pro- 
 mises of every good from the wildest emancipation. Neither 
 
 time nor circumstances, are now favourable to the enter* 
 tainment of their Petition.— But it has been exclaimed. 
 What, then! is all hope of more fortunate conjuncture, and 
 of more auspicious situation of affairs to be extinguished, 
 and this oppressed people to be driven to comfortless 
 
 despair ? 
 
 " I would answer, with conscientious sincerity, that true 
 belief, indeed, would induce me to place the measure of 
 satisfaction best calculated for their real happiness, in a 
 supposed extinction of all views beyond the present ample 
 means of comfort and prosperity. Let them be fairly esti- 
 mated, cherished, and enjoyed ; they will produce a hai^est 
 of blessings. I dare not at present presume to dream of 
 more, which may be good for them, or safe for us: but 
 God forbid that we should venture to circumscribe the 
 ways of his Divine Providence, which may remove obstacles 
 at present too strong for our attempt to clear away, or to pass 
 by. There may (and I wish there may) be future reasons, 
 however unexpected now, to prove the security with which 
 the Protestants may grant the competency of the Catholics, to 
 be entrusted with the fullest participation of rights and pri- 
 vileges. They may, by habits of industrj^ good order, harmo- 
 nious concord, social intercourse, mutual good-vvill, and reci- 
 procal good offices, and by zealous patriotism aiiu loyalty (all 
 indeed having tendency to their own immediate benefit, and 
 therefore the most gratifying to the liberal spirit of the legis- 
 lature), give encouragement for unrestricted confidence. They 
 may find cause unequivocally to withdraw that barrier (insu- 
 perable, whilst it remains in force) of divided allegiance, the 
 obligation to Papal supremacy, which a noble lord has most 
 forcibly and most eloquently demonstrated to render vain ail 
 pretensious to equal rights, by the want of equal conditions. 
 I will not s'mt out the wish or the hope for, such alteration 
 of circumsUiiices ; but with our limitea power of searching 
 into future ( hances and changes, we can, I think, retain this 
 possible expectation, as the only prevention to a positive decla- 
 ration, that kare, even here, must be the Be all and the End 
 
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 STRONG JIEASONS AC A INST 
 
 all. We are, I am afraid, yet ^ly on our own necessary 
 defence. We are oblis^ed in conscience, honour, and dulv 
 to ourselves, and to our Constitution in Church and State, to 
 throw our shield of self-preservation before us, and on it to 
 exhibit the warning motto of, * Ne plus ultra: " 
 
 We have, indeed, gone as far as we ought to do, nay, farther 
 tlian I could have wished. And it would be happ}- for the 
 Catholics themselves, (while they retain the obnoxious senti- 
 ments they now hold,) if they would be content with the privi- 
 leges they enjoy, and not be ambitiously aspiring to high situa- 
 tions under a Protestant Govermnent, which thev are never 
 likely to acquire. For, let men talk as they will, about natural 
 rights. Sec, the general practice of all civilized nations has been, 
 to require all their executive officers to conform to the religion 
 of the State. 
 
 Hence, thougli Monsieurde Voltaire, in his** Treatise on Reli- 
 gious Toleration," very strongly recomniends it, yet he declares, 
 ** I pretend not to say, that such* persons as are of a different 
 religion from their prince, ought to partake of the j)laces and 
 honours of those who profess the religion by the law establish- 
 ed ;" and, for the confirmation of his opinion, he mentions the 
 conduct of the English towards the Roman Catholics, who 
 ** cannot be invested with civil employments, tliough, in other 
 respects, they enjoy all the privileges of citizens." 
 
 The late celebrated Arch-deacon Paley, also, t hough decidedly 
 against intolerance, yet was clearly of opinion, that none should 
 be adnutted to a share in the administration of any country, 
 *' whose disaffection to the subsisting government happened to 
 be connected wilh certain religious distinctions. 'J'he State, 
 undoubtedly, has a right to refuse its power and its confidence 
 to those who seek its destruction. Wherefore, if the generality 
 of any religious sect entertain dispositions hostile to the Con- 
 stitution, and if Government has no other way of knowing its 
 enemies, than by the religion they profess, the professors of 
 that religion may justly be excluded from offices of trust and 
 authority. But even here it should be obsen-ed, that it is not 
 against the religion that Government shuts its doors, but against 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS* 
 
 197 
 
 those political principles, which, however independent they 
 may be of any articles of religious faith, the members of that 
 communion are found in fact to hold." 
 
 And now I })articularly call the attention of all the mem- 
 bers of the Romish Church, and of others who have pleaded 
 in their defence, to the following *' Declarations" of the 
 J'rench King, *' given at Versailles, 14th May, 1724." 
 
 " Akt. XII. — We order, That, according to the anciefit de- 
 crees of our royal predecessors, and the custom of this realm, 
 none of our subjects may, or shall be admitted into any office 
 of judicature in any of our court?, bailiwicks, scneschars, or 
 provost*s jurisdictions ; nor into those of high justices ; nor 
 even into the places of mayor and sheriffs, and other olTicers 
 of the guildhall of any town, to enjoy them in their own right, 
 or by deputation, or othervvise; nor in like manner, into the 
 offices of register, attorney, notary, tipstaff, or serjeant, of any 
 jurisdiction whatever ; nor, in general, into any public oftice or 
 post, whether in their own right, or by commission ; not even, 
 into any place in our royal palace or pahices, without a certi- 
 ficate from the curate, or, in his absence, from the vicar of 
 the parish, where they live, of their good life and conversation, 
 and of their actual conformity to, and practice of the Roman 
 Catholic and Apostolic religion. 
 
 ** Art. XIII. — Our further pleasure is. That no licence be 
 granted, in any of the universities of this kingdom, to those 
 that have studied either law or physic, but upon like certifi- 
 cates granted them by the curates, 6cc. 
 
 •''Art. XIV. — No physicians, surgeons, apothecaries or mid- 
 wives; no bookselleis or printers may, or shall, be admitted 
 to exercise their art and profession in any place within our 
 realm, without producing a like certificate, &c." 
 
 Now, let the Catholics themselves be judges, with what 
 propriety they can ask those favours from a Protestant State, 
 which have been peremptorily denied to Frot<Htints in a (Ca- 
 tholjc country ? To their own decision also I leave it, whether, 
 on a coniparatlve view of the lenient treatment thei/ have re- 
 ceived from the English Government, during the past century. 
 
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 198 
 
 STROKG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 and of the dreadful sufTerings to which Protestants have been 
 exposed in France and other Catholic nations, they have any 
 just ground for discontent? How many thousands of Pro^ 
 testants have been shut in prisons and inquisitions, and even 
 cruelly butchered, merely on account of their religions prin- 
 ciples; while the Catholics in Great Britain, have not only been 
 free from persecution unto death, but have been quietly allow- 
 ed to worship God in their own chapels, and in their own 
 way, and have also enjoyed every civil liberty, compatible 
 with the security of the State ? 
 
 SECTION Vlll. 
 
 Some religious opinions of the Bonian Catholics, which are so 
 repugnant not only to reason, hut to " the Scriptures of Truth,"' 
 that it would be sinful, in any Protestant Government, to con- 
 sider those who hold them as entitled to the same civil immu- 
 nities which those of the Established Religion enjoy. 
 
 I have hitherto contended, that the claims of the Roman 
 Cathoiics are inadmissible, when considered in a political 
 point of view ; but I would now further observe, that they are 
 equally inadmissible, when beheld in a religious light. To 
 strengthen this assertion, I shall lay before the reader what 
 was lately said upon this subject, by a member in the HoUse 
 of Commons. " He thought (and, he hoped, without bigotry) 
 that it was a question for a religious conununity to consider, 
 whether they ought to do any thing to increase the influence 
 of a religion which they conceived to be contrary to tlie true 
 one. A sort of equalising spirit had gone forth ; and those 
 who were n6w called liberal men were averse to any dis- 
 tinctions, on account of religious opinions. But if this equal- 
 ising spirit, or this sort of liberality, was to be extended to 
 all the corporations of the kingdom, he could not but cott- 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 199 
 
 ceive that all respect for the Established Religion would cease, 
 if all the symbols of oftice were displayed, sometimes it\ 
 church, sometimes at 7nass, and sometimes in a synagogue. 
 The union between Church and State (however it might be 
 derided by some) appeared to him essentially necessary for 
 the preservation of our Constitution ; and the downfall of the 
 Church would be one of the surest means to effect the down- 
 fall of the State." 
 
 The peculiar tenets of the Catholics, which are so repre- 
 hensible in the judgment of Protestants, I shall now exhibit, 
 in their own words. 
 
 The following Popish creed was formed and published by 
 the Pope, December 9, 1564 : — 
 
 " I. I most firmly admit and embrace apostolical and ec- 
 clesiastical traditions, and ALL other observations and consti- 
 tutions of the same Church. 
 
 " XL I do admit the Holy Scriptures in the same sense that 
 holy mother Church doth, and hath admitted, whose business 
 it is to judge of the true sense and interpretation of them ; and 
 I will never receive and interpret them but according to the 
 unanimous consent of the fathers. 
 
 ** III. I do profess that there are seven sacraments of the 
 new law, truly and properly so called, instituted by Jesus 
 Christ our Lord, and necessary to the salvation of mankind, 
 though not qU of them to every one, viz., baptism, confirmation, 
 eucharist,penance, extreme unction, orders, and marriage ; and 
 that they do confer grace ; and that of these, baptism, con- 
 firmation, and orders, may not be repeated without sacrilege : 
 I do also receive and admit the received and approved rites 
 of the Catholic Church, in her solemn administration of the 
 abovesaid sacraments. 
 
 " IV. I do embrace and receive all and every thing that 
 hath been defined and declared by the holy Council of Trent, 
 concerning original sin 2Lnd justification, 
 
 •* V, I do also profess, that in the 7na^s there is offered unto 
 God, a true, proper, 2Lud propitiatory sacrifice for the living and 
 the dead; and that, in thejnost holy sacrament of the eucha- 
 
200 
 
 STKONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLARIS. 
 
 201 
 
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 rist, there is truly, really, and substantially , the body, and 
 BLOOD, together with the soul and divinity of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ; and that there is a conversion made of the 
 whole substance of the bread into the body, and of the 
 whole substance of the wine into the blood, which conversion 
 the Catholic Church calls transubstantiation'^ 
 
 lAnd yet /] 
 
 " VI. I confess, that under one kind only, whole and entire 
 Christ, and a true sacrament, is taken and received.- 
 
 " VII. I do firmly believe there is a purgatory, and that 
 the souls detained there, do receive help by the prayers of the 
 
 faithful. 
 
 "VIII. I do likewise believe, that the ^ai//^-, reigning to- 
 gether with Christ, are to be icorshipped and prayed unto, 
 and that they do otfer prayers unto Goi> for us, and that their 
 relicks are to be venerated. 
 
 " IX. I do most firmly assert, that the Images of Christ, 
 and of the Blessed Virgin, the Mother of God, and of other 
 saints, ought to be had and retained, and that due honour and 
 worship ought to be given to them. 
 
 " X. I do aft'irm, that the power of indulp^encies was left 
 by Christ in the Church, and that the use of them is very bene- 
 ficial to Christian people. 
 
 " XI. I do acknowledge the holy Catholic, and Apostolic 
 Roman Church, to be the Mother and Mistress of all Churches; 
 and I do promise and swear true obedience to the Bishop of 
 Rome, the successor of St. Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, 
 and Vicar of Jesus Christ. 
 
 " XII. I do undoubtedly receive and profess all other 
 things, which have been delivered, defined, and declared, by the 
 sacred canons and oecumenical councils, and especially by the 
 holy synod of Trent ; and all things contrary thereunto, and 
 all heresies condemned, rejected, and anathematized by the 
 Church, I do likewise condemn, reject and anathematize.*'* 
 
 * Now, all these gross absurdities, and unsciiptural human 
 devices, are called, by Papists, " the true Catholic faith, out of 
 
 But lest it should be said, that these are antiquated and obso- 
 lete opinions, not held by Catholics of the present day, I shall 
 now present the reader with some extracts from a Catholic 
 bishop*^ work, (published but two years ago,) of which this 
 is the title-page: — "The most Rev. Dr. James Butler's 
 Catechism ; revised, enlarged, approved, and recommended, 
 by the four Roman Catholic Archbishops of Ireland, as a ge- 
 neral Catechism for the Kingdom. Sixth edition, corrected, 
 and improved. Dublin : printed by H. Fitzpatrick, 4, Capel- 
 street, printer and bookseller to the Roman Catholic College, 
 Maynooth. 1810. 
 
 " Of the true Church. 
 
 « 
 
 (( 
 
 Q. What do you mean by the true Church? 
 A. The congregation of all the faithful, who, being bap- 
 tized, profess the same doctrine, partake of the same sacraments, 
 and are governed by their lawful pastors under our visible head 
 on earth. 
 
 ** Q. How do you call the true Church ? 
 
 " A. The Holy Catholic Church, Apostles' Creed. 
 
 " Q. Is there any other true Church, besides the holy Ca- 
 tholic Church ? 
 
 '* A. No; as there is but one Lord, one faith, one baptism^ 
 one God, and father of all ; there is but one true Church. 
 Ephes. iv. 
 
 ** Q. Are all obliged to be of the true Church ? 
 
 ** A. Yes ; no one can be saved out of it. Acts, ii. Luke, 
 X. John, X. Malt, xviii. 
 
 •* Q. Why do we call the Church Roman ? 
 
 " A. Because the visible head of the Church is Bishop of 
 Rome ; and because St. Peter and his successors fixed their 
 See in Rome. . . 
 
 which no man can be saved." [Vera et Catholica fides, extra 
 quam nemo salvus esse potest.] With what truth, modesty, 
 and charity, let the Protestant reader determine ! 
 
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*>02 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIM?. 
 
 203 
 
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 " Q. Who is the visible head of the Church r 
 **A. The Pope; who is Christ's vicar on earth, and su- 
 preme visil)le head of the Church. 
 " Q. To whom does tlie Pope succeed as visible licad of the 
 
 Church ? 
 
 " A. To St. Peter, who was chief of the Apostles, Christ's 
 vicar upon earth, and tirst Pope and Bishop of Rome. 
 
 " Q. When was St. Peter made Pope, or head of the Church? 
 
 " A. Cliietlv when Christ said to him. Thou art Peter, and 
 upon this rock I will build mji Church,— -and 1 icill s;ive to thee 
 the h'tJf<; of the hinudom of heaven I Feed my lamh<,fecd Jiut 
 sheep. Matt. xxvi. John, xxi. 
 
 '« Q. What do these texts of Scripture prove? 
 
 ** A. That Christ committed to St. Peter, and to his lawful 
 successors, the care of his whole Hock, that is, of his whole 
 Church, both pastors and people. 
 
 <* Q. W^ho succeed to the other Apostles ? 
 
 '* A. The bishops of the holy Catholic Church. 
 
 «' Q. Can the Church err in what it teaches ? 
 
 " A. No; because Christ promised to the pastors of his 
 Church, Behold I am tcith you all days, even unto t':c consum- 
 mation of the world. Matt, xxviii. 20. 
 
 " Q. W^hr'telse did Christ promise to his Church? 
 
 «* A. That the unites of hell should not prevail against it. 
 
 Matt. xvi. 18. 
 
 " Q. W^hat other advantages have we in the true Church ? 
 
 " A. W'e have true faith, icith the communion of saints, and 
 the forgiveness of sins. Ap. Cr. 
 
 " Q. What means the forgiveness of sins ? 
 
 "A. That Christ left to the pastors of his Church the 
 power of forgiving sins\ St. John, xx. 23. 
 
 " On Purgatory. 
 
 «• Q. W^hat is Purgatory ? 
 
 « A. A place of punishment in the other life, where some 
 souls suffer for a time, before they can go to heaven. Matt xii,32. 
 
 i 
 
 " Q. Do any others go to Purgatory besides those who die 
 in re;?/tf/sin? 
 
 " A. Yes ; all who die indebted to God's justice on account 
 of mortal sin. 
 
 " Q. Can the souls in Purgatory be relieved by our prayers 
 and other good works ? 
 
 " A. Yes ; being children of God, and still members of the 
 Church, they share in the communion of saints — and the Scrip- 
 ture says. It is a, holy and wholesome thought to pray for the 
 dead, that they may be loosed from their sins. 2 Mace. xii. 4G. 
 
 " On the Precepts of the Church.* 
 
 " Q. Are there any other commandments besides the ten 
 commandments of God ? 
 
 " A. There are the commandments, or precepts of the 
 Church, which are chiefly six. 
 
 •* Q. Say the six commandments of the Church. 
 
 "A. 1. To hear Mass on Sundays, and all holy days of obli- 
 gation. 
 
 " 2, To fast and abstain on the days commanded. 
 
 " 3. To confess our sins at least once a year. 
 
 " 4. To receive worthily the blessed Eucharist, at Easter, 
 or within the time appointed. 
 
 •* 5. To contribute to the support of our pastors. 
 
 ** 6. Not to solemnize marriage at the forbidden times ; 
 nor to marry persons within the forbidden degrees of kindred, 
 or otherwise prohibited by the Church ; nor clandestinely. 
 
 ** Q. What do you mean by fast days ? 
 
 " A. Certain days on which we are allowed but one meal, 
 and forbidden flesh-meat. 
 
 " Q. What do you meaii by days of abstinence ? 
 
 * I'o contirm some of the precepts of the Church, this 
 " Most Rev. Dr. Butler" quot^^s the Councils of Lateran 
 and of Trent, and thereby shews, that whatever they decreed, 
 all who profess the Catholic religion are bound to obey. 
 
 o2 
 
 M l M 'i .m ii i j— ■ 
 
204 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 205 
 
 ^•. 
 
 " A. Certain days on which we are forbidden to eat flesh- 
 meat, but are allowed the usual number of meals. 
 
 " Q. Is it as strictly forbidden by the Church to cat flesh- 
 meat on Saturday as on Friday? 
 
 " A. Yes ; and to eat flesh-meat on a Saturday, or any 
 other day on which it is forbidden, without necessity, and 
 leave from the Church, is veiy sinful. 
 
 " On the Sacraments, 
 
 *' Q. How many Sacramenis are there ? 
 
 *' A. Seven; Baptism, Conflrmation, Eucharist, Penance, 
 Extreme Unction, Holy Order, and Matrimony. Council of 
 Trent, S. S. 7. c. 1.* 
 
 * There is a remarkable decree of the Council of Trent, 
 \\i\\\ respect to all these pretended seven Sacraments : ** If 
 any one shall say, that Christ did not institute all the Sacra- 
 ments of the new law, or that they are more or less than 
 seven, or tiiat any one of the seven is not truly and properly a 
 Saci-ament, let him be anathema." [Si quis dixerit sacra- 
 menta novae legis non fuisse omnia a Jesu Christo domino 
 nostro instituta, aut esse plura vel pauciora quam septem, vi- 
 delicet, Baptismum, Conflrmationem, Eucharistiam, Peniten- 
 tiam, Extremam Unctionem, Ordinem, et Matrimonium, aut 
 etiam aliquod horum septem non esse ver^ et propria sacra- 
 mentum, anathema sit. Concil Trident. S. 7. 3. Martii, 1.347. 
 Can. 1.] The Popish clergy require also, under pain of being 
 pronounced accursed, " A full approbation oi all the received 
 and approved rites the Church is accustomed to use, in the 
 solemn administration of the Sacraments." [Si quis dixerit 
 receptos et approbates et ecclesiae Catholicae ritus in solemni 
 sacramentorum administratione adhiberi consuetos, aut con- 
 temni, aut sine peccato a ministris pro libito omitto, aut in 
 novos alios per quern cunque ecclesiarum pastorem mutare 
 posse, anathema sit. IL Can. 13.] Thus the Roman Church 
 has taken eflectual care, that every one must have communion 
 with her in her errors and corruptions, or have no communion 
 with her at all. Pope Boniface VHI. expressly declared, ac- 
 cordingly, " That obedience to the bishop of Rome was abso- 
 lutely necessary to salvation." [Porr6 subesse Romano pon- 
 viftci, omni humanae creaturae declaramus, diciraus, definimus. 
 
 " On the blessed Eucharist. 
 
 " Q. What is the blessed Eucharist ? 
 
 ** A. The body and blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ, 
 under the appearances of bread and wine. 
 
 " Q. What do you mean by the appearances of bread and 
 wine } 
 
 " A. The taste, colour, and form of bread and wine, which 
 still remain, after the bread and wine are changed into the 
 body and blood of Christ. , 
 
 " Q. Are botii the body and blood of Christ, under the ap- 
 pearance of bread, and under the appearance of wine ? 
 
 *' A. Christ is whole and entire, true God and true Man, 
 under the appearance of each. 
 
 " Q. Are we to believe, that the God of all Glory is under 
 the appearances of our corporal food ? 
 
 ** A. Yes ; and we must also believe that the same God of 
 all Glory suft'ered death, under the appearance of a criminal on 
 the cross. 
 
 •* Q. Did Christ give power to the priests of his Church, 
 to change bread and wine into his body and blood ? 
 
 " A. Yes; when he said to his apostles at his last supper, 
 Do this for a commemoration of me. Luke, xxii. 19. 
 
 " Q. What is the Sacrifice of the New Law ? 
 
 " A. The Mass. 
 
 ** Q. What is the Mass } 
 
 " A. The sacrifice of the body and blood of Christ, which 
 are really present under the appearances of bread and wine ; 
 and are ofl'ered to God by the priest for the living and the 
 dead. 
 
 ** Q. Is the Mass a different sacrifice from that of the Cross ? 
 ** A. Xo ; because the same Christ, who once oftered him- 
 self a bleeding victim to his heavenly Father on the cross. 
 
 et pronunciamus, omnino esse de necessitate salutis. Bo?ii< 
 facius oct. Extravag. Com. Tit. viii. c. 1, dc majoritate ei 
 (fbedientid.^ 
 
 ^\ 
 
206 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 continues to offer himself in an unbloody manner by the hands 
 of his priests, on our altars. 
 
 " On Confession and Indulgencies, 
 
 " Q. What should we do after confession ? 
 
 " A. We should return God thanks ; and diligently per- 
 form the penance enjoined by the confessor. 
 
 " Q. What do you mean by the penance enjoined by the 
 confessor ? 
 
 " A. The prayers and other good works \^hich he enjoins 
 on penitents, in satisfaction for their sins, 
 
 " Q. Will the penance, enjoined in confession, always satisfy 
 for our sins ? 
 
 "A. No; but whatever is wanting may be supplied by 
 indulgencies, and our own penitential endeavours. 
 
 " Q. What does the Church teach concerning indulgencies? 
 
 " A. That Christ gave power to the Church to grant in- 
 dulgencies; and that they are most useful to Christian people. 
 Cone, TricL xi. 25. 
 
 " Q. What is the use of an indulgence ? 
 
 " A. It releases from canonical penances, enjoined by the 
 Church on penitents, for certain sins. 
 
 " Q. Has an indulgence any other effect? 
 
 " A. It also remits the temporary punishments, with which 
 God often visits our sins — and which must be suffered in this 
 life, or in the next; unless cancelled by indulgencies, by acts 
 of penance, or other good works. 
 
 " Q. Has the Church power to grant such indulgencies ? 
 
 " A. Yes ; whatsoever, says Christ to St. Peter, thou shaft 
 loose upon earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven.*' Matt. xvi. 
 19; 2Cor. ii. 10.'' 
 
 Here is a curious specimen of the Popish belief, though we 
 may assume that it has been expressed with the utmost caution 
 and art, to render it the less objectionable to Protestants. But, 
 disguised as it is, I think enough appears to render it truly ot- 
 
 TIIE ( ATJIOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 207 
 
 fensive. If, however, we are willing to subscribe to such a creed, 
 i can only pity our i.'rnorance, and say, as Christ said to the 
 Saducecs, '' You do err, not knowing the Scriptures." 
 
 False and dangerous as these corruptions of Christianity are, 
 it is still more shocking to fin<l, that a sentence of excommu- 
 nication and damnation is denounced against all who will not 
 submit to them ; and that the members of the Romish Church 
 are not only required to receive them as articles of faith, but 
 tojoin witli their priests in cursing and anathematizing those 
 who are called Protestants, because they protest against the 
 religion which teaches them. 
 
 And here, I wish to remind my Protestant brethren of 
 Solomon's words, " The curse causeless shall not come"— 
 {Prov.xxvi, 2) ; and also of our Saviour's command, "Bless them 
 that cuise you, do good to them that hateyou, and pray for 
 them that despitcfuliy useyou, and persecute you." Matt, v, 
 44. For my part, I cordially agree with Dr.' Middleton in 
 saying, " I can live not only in charity, but in friendship with 
 the Papists, without the least inclination to offend them^ any 
 further than by obstructing all endeavours to introduce a reli- 
 gion among us, which would necessarily be ruinous to the 
 liberty of our country," and, in my opinion, to the spiritual 
 and eternal interests of men. 
 
 Under this impression, therefore, and being « affectionately 
 desirous" of deterring my fellow-creatures from embracing so 
 corrupt a religion, I ask (upon the principles of common sense), 
 whatcanany rational man think of such contemptible doctrines, 
 as the infallibility of a poor weak human being, and his 
 supremacy over all the kingdoms and empires upon earth, yea, 
 over heaven and hell, of which he keeps the keys.* Who 
 can believe that a priest (and he, perhaps, a wicked man) 
 can transubstantiate a wafer, or a bit of bread, into a human 
 body and soul, yi a, into the very nature of God ? Who can 
 
 In the Revelation (iii. 7.) it is emphatically said ot' 
 Uirist, the Head of the Church, that *' he hath the key o. 
 David, he openeth, and no man shutteth, and shutteth, and n§ 
 man openeth,"— consequently not even the Pope himself. 
 
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 I 
 
208 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 suppose, that we are allowed to worship the Omnipotent 
 Being under images of wood, or stone, silver or gold?* Who 
 can persuade himself that the Pope, who is a man '* subject 
 to like passions with others," is endued with a divine power 
 to sell pardons for all kinds of sin, and indulgencies for all man- 
 ner of wickedness ?t 
 
 Now, St. Peter (whose successor the Pope pretends to be) 
 has warned us against all such deceivers, saying, ** There shall 
 be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in dam- 
 nable heresies ; and, through covetousness, shall they with 
 feigned words make merchandise of you." 2 Pet. ii. 1, 3. 
 
 Who can help being oft'ended at the Popish arrogance, in 
 refusing the cup to the laity, when there is not a single instance 
 in Scripture to sanction such a practice ?+ Who is not grieved. 
 
 ^ 
 
 \t 
 
 * " We ought not to think, that the Godhead is like unto 
 gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art, and man's device." 
 Acts, xvii. 29. " They change the gloiy of the incorruptible 
 God into an image made like to corruptible man." Rom. i. 23. 
 
 t It appears, from the following extracts of the fees of the 
 Roman chancery, (taken from a book published by the Pope's 
 authority,) that the prices of absolution are as follow : 
 For lying with a woman in the church, and there 
 committing other enormities — — 
 
 For gross and wilful perjuiy — — — 
 
 For a layman for murdering a layman — ^ — 
 But for laying violent hands on a priest, though 
 without shedding blood — -:— — 
 For defiling a virgin — — — — 
 
 For a priest or clergyman keeping a concubine — 
 For committing incest — — — — 
 
 But, for forging the Pope's hand-writing — — 
 — See Taxa S. CancellariiE Apostolicap. 
 
 X Christ, the great Prophet of his Church, has taught us a 
 different lesion. He does not confine the drinking of his hlood 
 (that is, the wine, which is the symbol of it) to his Apostles 
 alone, but says in general terms : " Whoso eateth my flesh, 
 and drinketh my hlood, hath eternal life." And when he in- 
 stituted the sacrament, we are told, that " he took the cup, 
 and gave it to them, saying, drink ye all of it ; for this is my 
 blood of the New Testament, which is shed," (not for you my 
 Apostles only, but) " for many, for the remission of sins" — 
 even as many as " shall believe on me, through your word." 
 
 £. 
 
 s. 
 
 d. 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 ^HE CATHOLIC CLAIMS, 
 
 209 
 
 that millions of common people should be prohibited by their 
 priests, from " searching the Scriptures," in direct contradic- 
 tion to Christ's command, though they have souls as infinite 
 in value and duration, as the proudest Pope, or the highest 
 monarch upon earth? And, lastly, what can any serious Chris- 
 tian think of Yhe ** damnable heresy" of the Popish clergy, in 
 setting up the vain traditions of their Church above the autho- 
 rity of the word of God, particularly, by " forbidding to marry," 
 and enjoining " abstinence from meats," at their pleasure?* 
 
 If, however, the God whom we serve tolerates such opinions 
 as these, which are an insult to his natural and moral perfec- 
 tions, w^e are bound to do likewise ; but to give any farther 
 countenance to the professors of them, is to encourage blas- 
 phemy, and the practice of idolatiy, by law, in a Christian 
 country. To do any thing more than merely to tolerate 
 Popery, is to be instrumental to the perdition of immortal 
 souls now existing, and of millions of spirits which at present 
 have no existence, but in the prescience of God ; and may 
 eventually be the means of bringing ruin on ourselves, and our 
 posterity. Therefore, Protestants, beware ! oh, beware I 
 
 * " Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that, in the latter 
 times, some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing 
 spirits, and doctrines of devils ; speaking lies in hypocrisy, 
 having their conscience seared with an hot iron, forbiddino^ to 
 marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God 
 hath created to be received with thanksgiving, of them which 
 believe and know the truth." " Thus have ye made the com- 
 mandment of God of none effect by your traditions. Ye hy- 
 pocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, " This 
 people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth 
 me with their lips, but their heart is far from me : but in vain 
 they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the comvmndments 
 of men.'' 
 
 * 
 
 I 
 
210 
 
 5TiiONG REASONS AGAINSt 
 
 SECTION IX. 
 
 
 An ansicer to those ivho contend, that the Claims of the Catholics 
 should be complied with, on account of thcr ■ numbers, 
 strength, and opulence; and that such a concision is neces- 
 sary, in order to conciliaie them, to quiit all disturbances^ 
 and to promote peace and uuanimitif in Ireland, I'he adop- 
 tion of the innocations proposed, would new-model the Con- 
 stitutions-violate the principles of the Reformatio f, and the 
 Uevolution— 'discontent the loyal Protestants if Ireland, 
 fwho have preserved and strengthened the conuect'on between 
 the two countries) and not content the Roman Catholics— 
 would create division, confusion, and discord— might unsettle 
 the ecclesiastical and lay property of Ireland— revive all 
 those 7nischiefs which the Revolution was calculated to re- 
 dress—and, in short, might destroy the present Establish- 
 ment, 
 
 
 Not only common policy, but the '* mild and tolerant 
 spirit of the Prott stant religion," must naturally excite us to 
 do every thing we can (consistently with our own safety) 
 for the welfare and comfort of the Roman Catholics, though 
 50 veiy opposite in principle. Accordingly, that moderate 
 and benevolent prelate, the Bishop of Durham, thus accosted 
 the House of Lords, when the subject of Catholic Emancipa^ 
 tion was first discussed. 
 
 ^' How far it has been our disposition to shew, not merely 
 toleration, but real and active beneficence to persons difierin'^ 
 from us in articles of fiiith, may have appeared by the recep- 
 tion and protection which this country has recently atforded 
 to the Frt>,vc*/i pm^^j? .—where, to religious prejudices, was 
 superadded political danger; and when we had no security 
 against the introduction of spies and enemies ; nor any rea- 
 sonable assurance that there might not be individuals among 
 tiieiu, desirous of purchasing their return, on almost any con- 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 211 
 
 ditions which the usurped power of the French Government 
 might think proper to dictate. 
 
 " In that instance we had also to encounter religious dan- 
 ger from the bigoted spirit of conversion, whicli characterizes 
 their religion; — from the unfavourable sentiments which they 
 had nourished from their earliest infancy, with respect to 
 English Protestants ; — and from a peculiar species of domi- 
 neering intolerance, which distinguishes the French from all 
 other nations. — And yet these considerations, my Lords, did 
 not deter us from receiving them with all the warm charity 
 of Christians, and the liberality of Englishmen ;— exhibited 
 not merely by the higher orders, in the hour of plenty, but by 
 the poor and necessitous, at a period of general scarcity. 
 
 ** If we could do so much, and doit so willinalv, for fo- 
 reigners and enemies, can it for a moment be supposed, that 
 we ai-e not prepared to shew every degree of warm and af- 
 fectionate kindness to our friends and fellow-subjects in Ire- 
 land ? — can it be imagined that we shall not be ready to forget 
 every ditierence of opinion, and to endeavour to promote 
 their happiness and improvement, to the utmost of our 
 power ? 
 
 " In looking to the welfare of the great mass of Roman 
 Catholics in Ireland, I mean that useful body of men, which, 
 in every country, must compose the most nunit rous class of 
 its inhabitants, it will be wise and benevolent so to use the 
 power which the Constitution has placed in us, as a part of a 
 Protestant legislature, as to do for them individually all that 
 (were the power in their liands) they would be wise in doing 
 for themselves. In this view, my Lords, it may be a subject 
 for our consideration, how far we can better provide for the 
 discharge of their religious duties, and how far we may with 
 propriety assist them in that respect. We may enquire how 
 far we ( an improve their temporal condition, by supplying the 
 means and motives of industry, and by every exertion of 
 kindnes!2, which can promote their domestic comfort, improve 
 their character, and meliorate their condition : — and we may 
 eadeavo ir to make a more general provision for the educa- 
 
212 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 h 
 
 h * 
 
 ii:f 
 
 > \ 
 
 * 
 
 '?li 
 
 I 
 
 cation of their children ; not interfering with their religious 
 tenets, but attending to their instruction, — to making them 
 useful to themselves and to the community, — and to giving 
 them the unequivocal advantage of religious and moral 
 habits. 
 
 " These, my Lords, I looked to, as the objects of this 
 Petition. But what do I find in it? — Nothing in which the 
 general mass of the Irish Catholics is concerned ; nothing 
 connected with personal toleration ;— nothing to promote 
 the social and domestic habits of the labouring class, or to 
 improve their resources ;— nothing, my Lords, which is to have 
 a general operation in bettering the condition of our Catholic 
 fellow-subjects in Ireland ;— or is calculated to do more— 
 than to give certahi privileges and influence to a veiy few 
 opulent individuals among them. In short, my Lords, this is 
 not a Petition for toleration, but a demand oi power. It is 
 a complaint, that the present system detaches from property 
 its proportion of political weight and influence ; and it asks 
 of the Legislature three things.— the right of sitting in Parlia- 
 ment; of exercising corporate offices; and of being subjected 
 to the burthen of acting as sheritVs of counties : — the lirst, 
 comprising the functions of legislation ; the second, the pri- 
 vileges of corporate franchise ; and the third, the important 
 delegation of his Majest/s executive power, in every county 
 of Ireland. 
 
 " These, my Lords, are powers of no inconsiderable mag- ' 
 nitude.— But before we grant them, let us at least pause, 
 until we have ascertained how far their effects may extend ; 
 and whether, after such a concession, we shall, or shall not, 
 be able to obtain toleration for our Protestant fellow-subjects 
 ill Ireland. 
 
 " In the consideration of this subject, it will be necessary 
 to advert to the superior number of Papists in Ireland ;— to 
 the peculiar powers which their clergy exercise over the 
 laity ;— to the general connection of that clergy with 2i foreign 
 power ;— and to the degraded and servile dependance of the 
 Head of their Church, upon a State extremely inimical to this 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 -213 
 
 country.— We must also advert to the irritation of recent 
 hostilities ; and not merely to the probable consequences to 
 the Irish Protestants, but also the danger to the Catholics 
 themselves ; and, I may add, to the indelicacy, not to use a 
 harsher term, of placing increased power in their hands, cir- 
 cumstanced and connected as they at present are. — It will also 
 be important that your Lordships should consider the conse- 
 quences as to other sects ; — whether you can refuse to any 
 Irish Protestant, what you grant to every Irish Catholic ; and 
 again, on what ground you can give to the Irish CathoHcs, 
 that which you withhold from the Catholics in England ; and 
 where, and upon what principle, the line is to be drawn. 
 
 " All this requires serious and mature deliberation. It must 
 again and again be considered ; and every possible effect and 
 consequence weighed with the nicest and most attentive 
 accuracy, and with the most patient continuance of lalvour, 
 before a change so fundamental and unprecedented be 
 adopted." 
 
 Pursuant to this advice, I shall first consider what is 
 asked in ** Catholic Emancipation." Do they require the Prae- 
 tor's wand to be released from servitude — to hold property — to 
 be protected in their persons and possessions? No; in all 
 these respects, they are as free as any subjects in the world. 
 Do you talk of emancipating copy-holders, custom-house 
 officers, or excise officers ? The term, as it was first intended, 
 applies to emancipating Ireland, that is, to separate it from 
 the Government of, and connection with, England. But 
 what is asked ? To abolish all distinction between Protes- 
 tants and Papists — to place the Papists upon an equality with 
 the Protestants. Whilst any distinction remains, nowever 
 high or special, the grievance remains. But for this purpose. 
 Parliament cannot -move a step without the repeal of the Test 
 and Corporation acts. In the opinion of many, and to the 
 extent to which the argument leads, the Act of Supremacy 
 and Uniformity, the Bill of Rights, the Act of Settlement, 
 the Act of Union with Scotland, and even the King s Coro- 
 nation Oath, must also be repealed. 
 
 I ■ ij 
 
214 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 I' 
 
 »' 
 
 Perhaps, there may arise a question, hetween original com- 
 pact, and the supremacy of Parliament. Undoubtedly, our 
 laws are not like those of the Medes and Persians, that alter 
 not — undoubtedly, no Parliament has greater power than the 
 succeeding one. But considering the solemnity attendant 
 upon these laws, is it not most unwise to raise doubts, and 
 agitate the minds of men upon points, which (as multitudes 
 believe) strike at the very settlement of, and right to, the 
 Crown itself, without urgent and pressing necessity — with- 
 out being convinced, iirst, that we shall do no harm— next, 
 that we shall do essential benelit — and, lastly, that a plan of 
 greater public utility is to be established, in room of that 
 which it is proposed to take away? 
 
 Now, what are the reasons assigned for this extraordinary 
 •measure? One of the" principal is, that the numbers, wca/th, 
 and power of the Catholic body entitle them to tlie favour 
 they ask ; and that policy should induce us to grant it. 
 
 It is averred, that the Catholics in Ireland amount to four 
 millions, and that the Protestants do not form one-tenth of 
 that number. But Dr. Duigenan, lately, in the Housi; of 
 Commons, by a variety of calculations, disproved this state- 
 ment, and maintained, that the Protestants were but as three 
 to fve of the whole population. From the enumerations 
 which he was led to make, in two extensive parishes, com- 
 pared with the number of hearths, as ascertained from the 
 hearth-tax, and the number of inhabitants in each house, he 
 was led to conclude that there were not above 3,500,000 souls 
 in Ireland. About the year 176-2, a Catholic bishop. Dr. 
 Burke, published a book, in which he declared, that the 
 number of Catholics, in the whole kingdom, did not exceed 
 tico millions, an<l he lamented much, that^ the proportion of 
 the inhabitants had increased greatly on the Protestant side, 
 in the interval between 1731 and 176-2. To suppose, then, 
 that they had, since that time, doubled tlieir population; 
 with such drains and emigrations operating continually ever>^ 
 year, was quite absurd, especially when it apj>eared, that the 
 population of England had increased little more than three 
 
 "OO? 
 
 *. ^ 
 
 2«pMf»a' 
 
 iJ 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS* 
 
 21.3 
 
 millions since the Revolution, at which period it was esti- 
 mated at seven. But, as there was a bill in progress through 
 liic House, for ascertaining the population of Ireland, Dr. 
 Duigentm observed, that till the census was actually taken, 
 theie was only assertion against assertion ; and he hoped that 
 one was as good as another. It was clear to him that the 
 aggregate number of all the inhabitants was not more than 
 he had stated them ; and that, out of the 3,600,000, he be- 
 lieve.! that one million and two hundred thousand were 
 Protestants. And if all the inhabitants of the British Isles 
 amount to sixteen millions, then the Romanists do not exceed 
 one-eighth part of that population. 
 
 As to the wealth and power of the Catholics in Ireland, he 
 remarked, that they, also, were prodigiously exaggerated. 
 With respect to real property, he was confident they did not 
 possess one out of 49 parts of the whole ; and as to conDuer- 
 cial property, they did not possess one-tenth of it, nor one 
 thousandth part of the property of the united kingdom : so 
 that, in fact, they compose the mob and beggary of Ireland, 
 and are not of consequence enough, either in multitude, 
 riches, or influence, to demand (as the Petition virtually 
 does) the subversion of the Constitution in Church and State, 
 and the destruction of the Irish Protestants, for their gratifi- 
 cation. Surely, the mob, -divl t\\(i indigent part of the popu- 
 lation of any country, (like the Romanists of Ireland,) ought 
 not to be indulged, at the expence of the ruin of the loyal, 
 opulent, and respectable part. Should the contrary conduct 
 be pursued, agrarian laws, and the system of equality, must 
 be adopted in every state ; because the poor in every state 
 compose the bulk of the population, and are desirous of de- 
 grading and plundering the great and the i ich in every state, 
 as well as in Ireland. Oh, let us beware of these levelling prin- 
 ciples ! 
 
 Let us consider too, that if the demaiuls of the Petitioners 
 were conceded to their numbers and their majority, no possi- 
 bility would remain of refusing to com})ly with any future 
 
 
216 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 demands they may think proper to make. What their num- 
 bers and majority shall have once obtained, would only tend 
 to stimulate them to fresh demands, until nothing remained 
 for them to require, and they became not merely a prevailing 
 party in the Government, but exclusively the Government 
 itself. 
 
 It would, therefore, be reasoning like novices, and not like 
 statesmen, to make the great fundamental principles of a con- 
 stitution (such as this mighty empire boasts of) bend so far, 
 as to give up bulwarks, in exchange for the strength expected 
 to be derived from the grant of what the Catholic Petitionei-s 
 sue for. Should they obtain their wish, can it be rationally 
 supposed, that they will be the more firmly united to the Pro- 
 testants, and exert themselves for the defence of an Establish- 
 ment, which the very nature of their religion, and their private 
 and public interests must prompt them to subvert? If, then, 
 we add to their political power, we only strengthen their hands, 
 and weaken our own — we furnish them with weapons, which 
 they will not fail to use against ourselves. 
 
 The numbers of the Irish Catholics have been stated with a 
 double object, to describe them as a source of strength, if con- 
 ciliated, and of terror, if their demands be refused. But the 
 truth is, we can only gratify a few individuals among them, 
 of exalted rank, and ambitious views. The Catholic populace 
 of Ireland care little -or nothing about the aggrandisement of 
 the few noblemen Avho are of their religion, if they cannot 
 deliver them from the payment of tithes and taxes, and raise 
 them out of their present low condition: and if they find 
 that this be not done for them, their dissr.tisfaction will be 
 greater than ever. Besides, if the higher classes of the Catho- 
 lics have the influence which they and their advocates pretend 
 to, and yet have not hitherto exerted it, in suppressing their 
 various insurrections, they can have no claim upon the con- 
 iidence of the Legislature : but if (as I believe the case to be) 
 they possess no power, when opposed to the passions of the 
 inferior people, and the interested efforts of their clergy, I 
 
 *. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 217 
 
 cannot but consider the yielding to their demands, as a proba- 
 ble sacrifice of our presiont Establishment, for a most immate- 
 rial consideration. 
 
 Both in and out of Parliament allusions have been often 
 made to the valour of the British armies, full of the brave men 
 who are the objects of this motion. But, would they not 
 bleed for us, in spite of their disqualifications? Would they 
 not, as became united citizens of one empire, still continue to 
 win and wear the laurel, w^hich they so eminently were entitled 
 to? Would they not still co-operate in the cause into which 
 they at first embarked ? If those who supported their claims 
 thought they were aggrieved, they need only look to their con- 
 duct in the British service, in order to be convinced that the 
 Irish soldiers and sailors do not think themselves aggrieved. 
 They have acted nobly without power, but can we be assured 
 that their gallantry will be greater, or even as great, if tiiey 
 were endued with power? The experiment wovAd be replete 
 with hazard. It is \ve\\ known, that the element of /re " is a 
 good servant, but a bad 7n aster,** Kept under control, it is not 
 to he feared ; but to suffer it to gain ascendancy, would be 
 ruinous. I am not disposed to retaliate upon the Catholics 
 the sins of their forefathers ; but at the same time, it is but 
 justice due to ourselves, to restrict them from imitating their 
 ancestors. Even in their [)resent weak state, they have often 
 attempted to follow the example. Shall we then encourage 
 them to pursue the same plan, by arming them with power ? 
 It would be madness in the extreme. While they are under 
 restraint, the Protestants are able, of themselves, to subdue any 
 rebellion which may arise in the country, as they have often 
 done before. In 1799, they were taken by surprise, and 
 many hundreds of them slaughtered in cold blood ; but, not- 
 withstanding, they quelltd the insurrection in two months. 
 God forbid that any such disturbance should happen again; 
 but if it should, I am confident the Protestants have sufiicicnt 
 power to crush it alone, so that England need not be alarmed 
 with croaking prophecies of Irish insecurity. 
 
 . 1. 
 
 
 I? 
 
 i: 
 
218 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 ¥ 
 
 1 ' 
 
 :f 
 
 E4' 
 
 They who are natives of Ireland, and have spent most of 
 their life in it, must certainly know the situation of the country, 
 and the disposition of the Catholics, there, far better than the 
 inhabitants of this kingdom. And, therefore, it is to be hoped 
 that the opinion of the membeis of Parliament who come 
 from thence, will have its due weight. 
 
 Now, (says Mr. Alexander,) " Let England but understand 
 her true interest; let her justly appreciate the spirit, zeal, and 
 loyalty of the Protestants of Ireland; let her be convinced 
 thei/ feel their properties, their honours, and their lives depen- 
 dent upon British connexion. But if England unfortunately 
 forgets what is due to as brave and as zealous allies as any 
 nation ever possessed, her Protestant subjects at' Ireland, she 
 would have the most fatal reasons to lament her acquiescence 
 in their and her own destruction. Let England be firm in her 
 adherence to her laws and Constitution. No Catholic can be 
 oppressed by the laws in Ireland; his property and his pei-son 
 are protected by the same code and juries ^vhich protect the 
 Protestant. If, notwithstanding these advantages, any of them 
 should appeal to numbers, and be rashly tempted into rebel- 
 lion, arms and the law must punish the rebels! With such 
 impressions upon my mind, I should have felt myself unwor- 
 thy of being the representative of my Protestant countrymen, 
 had I not borne testimony to their zeal and their loyalty. 1 
 trust in God, and in the courage of the nation, that we are able 
 to defend our laws, religion, and property ; to maintain our 
 faith, and to uphold the throne." 
 
 Indeed, I believe no danger is to be apprehended while the 
 Irish Government is firm, and while we are disposed to support 
 its acts. To me it appears that the alleged discontents are the 
 the strongest argument against the present measure : for even 
 if the House were disposed to do all that is required of it, the 
 measure should seem to spring spontaneously from its own 
 bounty and liberality, and not, as might now be imputed, from 
 fear. The Catholics had certainlv assumed such a tone of 
 determined hostility, — they had treated the promulgations of 
 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 219 
 
 Government with such contumely, that any concession must 
 at present appear, in the extremest degree, mean and pusillani- 
 mous. The Catholics would then be the victors, fVie Govern- 
 ment the vanquished ; and, like all other victors, the Catholics 
 would pi-ess on to make new demands, and enforce new claims. 
 Let us now attend to the reasoning of that sagacious states- 
 man, Mr. Foster? " What is demanded by the Roman 
 Catholics in their Petition ? Political power only ; which 
 even their advocates in Parliament have confessed. And 
 what are the inducements held out to us for granting it? 
 They tell us, it will conciliate Ireland ; that it will incor- 
 porate four-fifths of the people there, and one-fifth of all 
 our population, at this perilous moment, when we have an 
 enemy to contend with, consisting of thirty-six millions of 
 people, and we have only fifteen millions to oppose to him ; 
 that, by not granting this Petition, we deprive ourselves of 
 one-fifth of our national vigour, and of our physical strength; 
 and that four-fifths of the Irish nation are thus rendered of 
 no use to the empire. Such are the arguments of the 
 honourable mover, and of tbe other gentleman, Mr. Grattan. 
 But how do their arguments support them? They foro-et 
 that, almost in the same breath, when they wish to prove 
 the safety of the measure, they tell you, and tell you tru!^^ 
 how much the empire is indebted to the Irish ; tliat the Irish 
 composed a great and illustrious part of that gallant army 
 which conquered Egypt ; that they supply a large propor- 
 tion of the British fleet with sailo/s ; and that, to their 
 courage and to their ardour. Lord Nelson was indebted for 
 his glorious victory at the Nile. They tell you too, that 
 half your armies in every war, half the militia, and a large 
 portion of the Irish yeomanry which overpowered the late 
 rebellion, and saved Ireland t6 the empire, were Catholics 
 of Ireland. I agree with them in the whole, to the honour 
 of my countrymen: and what follows? That we have now,. 
 of their own shewing, the full physical force, the full na-* 
 tional vigour, which they inconsistently bid us acquire, by 
 this unnecessary measure ; and I will add more, that if the 
 
 p 2 
 
 V 
 
 I 
 
 h , 
 
«20 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 I- 
 
 w 
 
 -d 
 
 armies want increase, if the navy requires additional hands, 
 this measure will not add one argument to the recruit, and 
 Irishmen will come fonvard with the same ardour, and with 
 the same alacrity, which has distinguished the character of 
 their country for its love of military glor>s whether you grant 
 the Petition or not. 
 
 ** But if conciliation is to follow, we ought to know whom 
 we are bid to conciliate : is it the lower and middling ranks 
 of the Catholic people ? I will assert, in presence of the many 
 gentlemen from Ireland, who can contnidict me if I am 
 wrong, that the mass of that people there do not know what 
 this claim means. Ask them what Catholic emancipation 
 is ; and so totally ignorant are they about it, that some say it 
 is an exemption from tithes; others, that it is to lower rents; 
 others, that it will save taxes. In short, all who have heard 
 of it (for many neither know nor care about it) will give you 
 their own conjectures of whatever claim, debt, or demand, 
 public or private, they wish to be freed from : scarce any believe 
 it to be what it really is, a struggle for a few offices of political 
 influence, or seats in Parliament, which the lower ranks cannot 
 enjoy, and feel no interest in. These lower ranks do not, and 
 cannot, urge what they neither want nor comprehend. It is 
 not, therefore, they who call for this measure. And now let 
 us see how the argument stands as to the superior orders of 
 
 the Catholics. 
 
 " Do the gentlemen tell you, the measure is necessary to se- 
 cure their loyalty, or to procure their strength in this hour of 
 peril ? They pay them a bad compliment indeed, if they re- 
 present this boon, or any other, as necessary to make or keep 
 them loyal; a compliment which 1 should be ashamed to 
 offer. I cannot believe that the higher ranks of the Catholics 
 are only conditionally loyal, or that they would qualify their 
 attachment to the empire, by resting it on claims to be con- 
 ceded, or stipulations to be bargained for : but if I could believe 
 * it, it would form with me an insurmountable bar to giving 
 them that political power, which is the acknowledged object 
 of their Petition ; and it ought to decide us all unanimously 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 2-21 
 
 and instantly to reject a demand so made. This argument 
 o^ conciliation, therefore, so lar as respects the loyalty, or 
 accession of the lower orders to the national strength, is con- 
 futed by the facts which the gentlemen who offer it have them- 
 scves urged ; and the upper orders cannot admit it, without 
 acknowledging a qualified and temporising loyalty only, which 
 their conduct disallows." 
 
 Again — With respect to the number of the Roman Catholics, 
 this should be considered in relation to the whole empire. In 
 ascertaining the class of persons in whom the power of the 
 Stale is to be vested, property, rank, respectability, talent, 
 knowledge, judgment, and congeniality of principles with 
 those of the State, are more to be attended to than numbers. 
 If numbers and physical force, unaccompanied by political 
 fteight and influence , whilst they can be brought into action 
 only in opposition to, and under the control of the laws, and 
 of the systematic authority of the State, are to excite appre^ 
 liension, how much more serious cause of alarm would there 
 be, if the same physical strength were aided by political ic eight 
 and influence, moulding and shaping the laws so as to give a 
 free and uncontrolled course to such conjoined force ? 
 
 These are neither idle speculations, nor groundless fears — 
 they are founded upon fatal experience. There are many do- 
 cuments to prove, that the object of the United Irishmen, for 
 several years past, was not to reform the State, nor to gain 
 some particular privileges for their Catholic brethren. They 
 aimed at the entire overthrow, not merely any imagined im- 
 provement, of the existing Constitution. In the House of 
 Lords, the Earl of Buckinghamshire declared, that, ** in 179*2, 
 Tone published in favour of independence, and separation of 
 Ireland from England. In the same year, Edward Byrne, an 
 eminent Roman Catholic priest, issued letters to the several 
 parish priests of Ireland, directing that delegates should be 
 elected by their several parishes to sit in a Roman Catholic 
 Convention ; his letters stated, that * serving on juries and the 
 elective franchise were the objects to be discussed by the Con- 
 vention.* It accordingly assembled in that year : and it most 
 
 
 4' 
 
 r: 
 
 T^J 
 
 m 
 
222 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 
 ! 
 
 t 
 
 certainly was the organ for expressing the thenreal objects of the 
 Roman Catholics. It affirmed, that * the objects of their pursuit 
 were merely admission to the bar, county magistracies, serving 
 on juries, and voting for members of Parliament, out of freeholds 
 of 20/. per annum :* but no resolutions of this Convention, in 
 any respect, related to the real objects of the conspiracy at 
 that time formed for the rebellion which took place in 1798; 
 nor did they include any claim to the great offices of the State, 
 or Parliamentary representation. The equivocal expression 
 of * Catholic Emancipation* was not adopted therein. Those 
 could not have been real ingredients in the plan of insurrection 
 then formed, nor were they in any respect consistent with the 
 nature of that plan, which proposed, not merely to alter the 
 Constitution, but to form an entirely new one, 
 
 " During some successive years, various Petitions were pre- 
 sented to the Irish House of Commons in Ireland, for a removal 
 of some of the incapacities under which the Catholics laboured, 
 &c., and even more than they had asked was granted. Yet, all 
 this while, rebellion was hatching, and a traitorous corres- 
 pondence was carried on with the Executive Directory of 
 France, to procure an invasion of Ireland : and, accordingly, in 
 December 1790, the invasion was attempted by Hoche. On the 
 12th of May, 1797, a report was made by the secret committee 
 of the House of Lords of Ireland, wTiich stated, that * Parlia- 
 mentary Reform, and Roman Catholic Emancipation, were 
 held out by the United Irishmen as a pretence, and to seduce 
 persons not apprised of their intentions.' Upon the 23d of 
 May, 1798, the first rebellion broke out; neither the procla- 
 mation which had been prepared by the Sheares^s to be issued 
 upon the breaking out of the rebellion, nor the other transac- 
 tions preceding or accompanying that event, point out the want 
 of Roman Catholic representation, or of the right to hold every 
 species of office, as grievances which the rebellion was calcu- 
 lated to redress. Thus, at the first formation of the plan of 
 rebellion, the Roman Catholics had not made the claims which 
 are now brought forward ; and, at the final execution of that 
 plan, the Roman Catholic claims were not in the contempla- 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 223 
 
 tion of the conspirators : in the iutermediate steps, they were 
 used merely tis pretexts. In the month of August 1798, are- 
 port of the committee of the House of Lords of Ireland stated, 
 that M*Nevin on his examination said, ' It was not intended 
 to have any religious Establishment, and that the mass of the 
 people in Leinster, Munster, and Connaught, did not care for 
 reform, or Catholic representation.' Those were the principal 
 Roman Catholic provinces. On the 23d of July 1803, the last 
 rebellion broke out ; and it was formed on the same principles 
 as the preceding one. 
 
 " Adverting, then, to the before-mentioned chain of facts, 
 and to the several reports made by the Committees of the 
 Houses of Parliament of Ireland in 1793, 1797, and 1798, it 
 appears, that the real objects which the two rebellions sought 
 to attain, were the annihilation of tithes; the lowering of rents ; 
 an equal distribution of property ; the leveling all the ranks 
 and orders of the State; separation of Ireland from England; 
 the destruction of the monarchy ; and the establishment of a 
 democracy, on the principles of the late French republic. The 
 Roman Catholic claims were not objects sought by the t\V^o 
 rebellions; and had those claims been formerly ceded, they 
 would not have prevented those rebellions : nay, were they to 
 he now conceded, every motive which led to those rebellions 
 would still exist, to conduce to further rebellion. Few of 
 those who were embarked in these commotions had any inte- 
 rest in establishing the Roman Catholic claims. A pamphlet, 
 published by a late respectable Roman Catholic nobleman, 
 suggested, that the mass of the people could be little benefited, 
 by the adoption of such a measure as that which is now proposed, 
 they being already capable of every thing which their situations 
 could entitle them to, and that probably not more than ten on 
 the part of Ireland could sit in the House of Commons' of the 
 united empire, one in the House of Peers, nor more than forty 
 or fifty be candidates for ollices of rank, trust, or emolument. 
 Thus the numbers to be gratified by an immediate gift are so 
 few, that the conciliation to be attained must be equally circum* 
 
 Jii 
 
 ill 
 
224 
 
 hTRONft IIEASONS AGAINST 
 
 f-i' 
 
 
 scribed-^theve being /eto capacitated to be candidates, the with- 
 holding the objects claimed is felt by /cm'— there are few to 
 complain of injmy—feic to acknowledge and be thankful for 
 favours conferred. Hence a concession productive at this day 
 of small conciliation of the Roman Catholics, of great dissatis^ 
 faction on the part of the Protestants, might lay a foundation, 
 when the political importance of the Roman Catholic body 
 became more considerable, for hazarding the safety of the 
 State, and exposing it to the persevering efforts of unremitted 
 zeal, guided by one common principle, and one all-ruling 
 influence. 
 
 ** It may be imagined by some, that, though the mass of the 
 Roman Catholics have no interest in the objects claimed, it 
 may be proper to concede them, in order to win over those 
 persons of rank and property, who have the power of influ- 
 encing the great body of the Roman Catholics. To this 1 
 answer, the lower orders have been influenced, not by the 
 respectable members of the same religious persuasion (who have 
 an interest in the claims now set up), but by factious dema- 
 gogues of various persuasions, who aimed at rebellion, not at 
 reform, or Catholic claims, and would have been equally active 
 in disseminating rebellion, if any concession had been made 
 short of annihilating the monarchy. It cannot be expected, 
 that the mass of the lower orders of the Roman Catholics, 
 should cease to be actuated by those interested motives, which 
 have heretofore influenced their conduct, because of a conces- 
 sion being made to some of the higher orders, of privileges 
 not to be enjoyed by the bulk of the people; in which they 
 have no interest, and by which their conduct has not hereto- 
 fore been guided. 
 
 "Again—It has been argued, that the influence which the mea- 
 sure under consideration would confer, at present, must be small, 
 probably necer can be great, and therefore there cannot be 
 any danger ; or if any, it must be remote. In the reign of 
 James II. both Houses of Parliament were Protestant, yet the 
 other branch of the Legislature was near succeeding against 
 
 If 
 
 A' 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIM?, 
 
 225 
 
 them both, in the establishment of Popery. James II. pro- 
 fessed to intend for the Roman Catholics * only an equality of 
 privileges;" that equality would have occasioned the downfall 
 of the Protestant religion: it was therefore resisted. The 
 resistance was ultimately successful; but the danger having 
 approached too near, the success of the resistance was attended 
 with difliculty and hazard. The fluctuation of property, in a 
 commercial country, and of the relative numbers composing 
 .the several sects, connected with the known perseverance of 
 the Roman Catholic body, renders it unsafe to trust to their 
 not being ^hlefuturely to do injury, because at the present day 
 they are unable, not being possessed of suflicient political 
 weight and influence. But, their unremitting zeal in pursuit 
 of this authority, their implicit submission to one ruling and 
 foreign power, to the exclusion of the supreme authority of 
 the State, their being all governed by one common principle, 
 and lirmly linked together by one general rule of action, render 
 it most unwise to entrust them with power, upon a supposi- 
 tion that, because it might, at the commencement, be incon^ 
 siderable, it could not hereafter be rendered dangerously great. 
 Sixty-four of the Irish members of the House of Commons sit 
 for counties, and many of the other thirty-six for open boroughs.* 
 The priests must have considerable weight in influencing the 
 elections, between Protestant and Roman Catholic candidates ; 
 and, were Roman Catholics eligible to Parliament, probably, at 
 a period not very remote, the representation on the'part of Ire- 
 land would be completely Roman Catholic. That body of men 
 would enjoy a great part of the Irish patronage. Who can mea- 
 sure the influence of a body of men so constituted ? Who can 
 foretel what they might efl'ect by a junction, at a critical mo- 
 ment, with other bodies of inen, standing in need of their assist- 
 ance, and ready to make them a proportionate return of favour 
 and support ?" 
 
 II 
 
 * See the admirable tract, " Catholic Emancipation," second 
 edition, 1812, p. o2. J. J. Stockdale. 
 
•226 
 
 SrnONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 227 
 
 fl 
 
 I 
 
 
 I go on now to consider anothor plea which was advanced 
 in the House of Lords, in favour of the Catholics, namely, 
 that " by granting the prayer of the l^etition, ParUanicnt would 
 at once remove all pretext for disturbance, and they would at 
 once become an united and a happy people." " Herein,*' 
 said one of the members, (the Earl of Buckinghamshire, if I 
 remember rightly,) " I difler entirely from the noble Lord. I 
 most solemnly declare, I do not think that by giving what is 
 asked, to the fullest extent, you will advance one single step 
 towards the tranquiliization of Leland. His Lordship will not, 
 I am sure, contend, that it is necessai*v to bribe the Catholic 
 noblemen and gentlemen into loyalty ; and as to the common 
 people, I am persuaded it would not gain over a single person, 
 now tainted with disloyalty, and ready, at a moment, to join a 
 French invader. No, my Lonls, seats in Parliament, and 
 admission to the highest oflices in the State, form no part of 
 the wishes of the Irish peasantry. Were yon to talk to them 
 on the subject, they would not understand you. If you wish 
 to conciliate those now inclined to join the French, I will 
 tell you what you must do. You are the best judges whether 
 you are willing to pay so high a price for their allegiance. 
 Are you ready to sacrifice the national Church, by giving up 
 the means that support it ? Are you ready to sink your revenue, 
 by giving up all taxes upon spirituous liquors ? And, last of 
 all, are you ready to sacrifice the whole Protestant and res- 
 pectable CcXtholic property of the country, by the abolition of 
 rents, and the perpetual grant of their farms, to the present 
 occupants? Such are the terms, I know, have been lately 
 offered to the Irish peasantry by French emissaries, and if you 
 mean to bid aguiiist them with any chance of sitccess, you 
 must not be outdone in the magnificence of your oilers." 
 
 " But to proceed with this favourite argument of concilia' 
 tion, and it is almost the only one offered. If it be still urged, 
 that this measure will give content, and that the Catholics 
 will rest satisfied, you are totally mistaken," said Mr. Foster, 
 wdien addressing the House of Commons. ** Let us judge 
 
 f)f then- future, by looking at their joa^f, conduct. In 1778, 
 the Irish Parliament removed some of the then existing re- 
 straints; content vfdi^ to be the consequence; but they were not 
 satisfied. In 1782, greater indulgence was granted; in 1792 
 they petitioned for further favours ; and, in 1793, much more 
 was given to tliem than even they asked. I did not agree in 
 that gift: I did not think that political wisdom justified our 
 going so far; but a contrary opinion prevailed ; the measure 
 was carried, and I wish it to be at rest for ever. I feared, at 
 the time, that it would lead to new and further inadmissible 
 demands ; and that fear was too well founded ; for two years 
 did not elapse ere, in 1795, they again came forward with 
 the same object as they do now : and do you think, that if you 
 now acquiesce, they will rest here? I am sorry to say, the 
 nature of man will not allow us to indulge such a hope, 
 while his pursuit is poiccr, honour, and riches. No, they will 
 not stop on this concession. We all know they look, with 
 jealousy, to their tithe being paid to the Protestant, to up- 
 hold his Church. The interested feelings of their Clergy, 
 whose influence over the minds of their flock is peculiarly 
 powerful in the Catholic worship, will urge them to continual 
 exertion for a restoration of those tithes. Possessed of them, 
 they would not rest ; even equality in religion w^ould not satisfy ; 
 they w^ould look to the weight of numbers, which their advo- 
 cates so often dwell on, that the religion of the greater num- 
 ber ought to be the religion of the State, In short, they 
 would look, in the end, to raise the Catholic Church in Ire- 
 land, on the ruins of the Protestant. Such will be the natural 
 result of giving them political power, and they would laugh 
 hereafter at our folly, were we to make the concession. 
 Power always has been, and still is, so prevalent in their 
 views, that they have connected it, in every attempt, with 
 every other object. Reform and emancipation have gone toge- 
 ther, in the whole of their progress. These two watch-words 
 of discontent were coupled together, in all their proceedings, 
 until the Union accomplished one of tli^m, the reform, which 
 Otherwise they might have pursued for ages without effect. 
 
 \ 
 
228 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 229 
 
 fi 
 
 
 
 I, 
 
 " Suppose now, for a moment, that they acquire a power 
 of sitting in Farliament, by the vote of this night — would it 
 be a strange conjecture, that they would soon feel that their 
 small number, if it were fifty or sixty, or even the whole 
 hundred, would be of little avail, among six hundred and 
 fifty-eight ! that the Union had accomplished the reform they 
 wished for, by the destruction of boroughs ; and that two 
 hundred stoats, all belonging to Protestants (for Protestants 
 only received the compensation), had been annihilated ? 
 Possessed, then, of this reform, and of their power of sitting, 
 it might be natural for them to look to a restoration of the 
 Irish legislature. They would see the barriers, which the 
 wisdom of ages had erected against th('ir having political 
 power, broken down by this night*s decision. Their exertions 
 would rise in proportion to their hopes of success, and it 
 would require only a revival of the Irish Parliament, to give 
 them the consequence and superiority they long for. 
 
 •* The honourable mover's doetrine, that seats in Parlia- 
 ment are their right, (qualified by him, I acknowledge, with 
 the exception of the sa/u^ populi suprcma /ex J would not 
 weaken their endeavours, nor their prospects. They would 
 consider it a right existing, but withheld from them at th«- 
 time the Union was discussed, and therefore they would strive 
 for a dissolution of that measure. They would call for three 
 hundred ;nembers to resume their functions in an Irish Par- 
 liament ; and the two hundred seats added in the room of the 
 one hundred Protestant boroughs, which we have demolished, 
 would all be filled by popular elections, where numbers, in 
 which their strength consists, would decide. What would 
 not a majority, so constituted, look to ? They would see 
 their own aggrandisement, the maintenance and dignity of 
 their clergy, and the consequent superiority of their Church, 
 all within their view. I will look no further into so tremen- 
 dous a prospect. This result may be slow, and I believe the 
 day of its accomplishment may be distant ; but is it the less 
 to be guarded against ? To me the reasoning seems so strong, 
 that I cannot shut my senses to it, nor to all the mischiefs 
 
 which must attend the attempt, and the miseries which must 
 follow it. I'he seeds of separation would be sown, and Ire- 
 land might be torn from her connexion with Britain, without 
 which she is and must be incapable of enjoying wealth, 
 tranquillity, happiness, or any of the blessings of human life." 
 
 Should the prayer of the Petition, therefore, be granted, 
 it will only be considered as a farther step to the establish- 
 ment of Catholic (I will not merely say, ascendancy, but) 
 dominion. It will only be grateful to them, as it will appear 
 to conduce to that end; consetiuently, instead of making 
 them contented and satisfied, it will only make them the more 
 rest/ess and turbulent. In proportion as they see a nearer 
 prospect of enjoying the full completion of their wishes, they 
 will grow more impatient of delay — they will hurry more 
 forward to the secuiing of their object. 
 
 It is very singular, that, in the ditferent Petitions to Par- 
 liament, some ye^rs ago, the Whig-club, among all the 
 grievances they complained of, said not a word of religious 
 grievances. Now, is it to be believed, that the great patriots 
 of the day should not have particularly mentioned these, if 
 any such oppressed the people? In 1791, relaxation w^as 
 given the Catholics in England, in consequence of which, the 
 Irish Catholics naturally applied. What happened ? The 
 Irish House of Commons would not grant the claims. No — 
 they threw the Petition ofl'the table, tweny-three only objecting. 
 
 It is clear, then, that the great patriots of that time would 
 not have rejected the Petition, if the state of the laws had 
 been an oppression to the country. When, therefore, was 
 the discoveiy made ? Why, as soon as it was discovered 
 that the government of England w^ished to do every thing 
 proper for the Catholics, then their religious grievances were 
 made out — then these /^rc^v?^/^/ patriots began to vociferate * — 
 
 * It has been always observable, that many of " The Op- 
 position" have recourse to various expedients, in order to 
 effect their pernicious purposes. They endeavour, by their 
 
 •J| 
 
 fi 
 
 1 
 
 
 fM' 
 
^30 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 231 
 
 n 
 
 and, whatever was given, the determination was to ask for 
 more ; so the more we grant, the more will be demanded, 
 till we have nothing more to surrender; and we ourselves, 
 perhaps, will be obliged to become Petitioners, in our turn. 
 
 My decided opinion, therefore, is, that too many conces- 
 sions have been already made to the Catholics in Ireland. I 
 speak particularly as to the grant of what they call the efectice 
 franchise, in the admission into the magistracy, and on juries. 
 It is upon those concessions that they now found their pre- 
 tensions for more. If other arguments were wanting to shew 
 the impolicy of these concessions, it is the manner in which 
 they have been received. Contraiy to what was professf ', 
 they have produced neither contentment nor satisfaction ; tl ey 
 have, in fact, been considered as the fruits of a victory not 
 yet complete — what they have gained they have received but 
 as an earnest of what remains behind. 
 
 If this be not their view of the subject, why did not the 
 Koman Catholics of England, immediately upon the conces- 
 sions made to their brethren in Ireland, come forward and 
 pray to be admitted to the same privileges? Why? but be- 
 cause the Roman Catholics in England are few, while in Ire- 
 
 
 intlammatoiy speeches, to rouse the people against the Govern- 
 ment. Revenge and disappointment prompt them to forge 
 specious falsehoods and calumnies, in order to impose upon 
 the national credulity. They direct their popular oratory to 
 the passions of the vulgar, and, instead of informing:, strive to 
 blind their understandings. And after they have, by the most 
 refined artifices, worked up the nudtitude to believe their 
 licentious discourses, and to countenance their seditious pro- 
 ceedings, they then affect to be guided by their judgment. 
 They profess the highest friendship for, and seek the entire 
 confidence of the people, but only v. ith this view, that they 
 may raise themselves upon their shoulders, to places of the 
 most lucrative emoluments in the State. This is particularly 
 the case at present. They who assume the name of patriots, 
 are, in general, the worst enemies of their country. In every 
 way, they exert themselves to impede and clog the wheels of 
 Government, that they may become the /?r/w??/m mobile oi Wig 
 whole machine. 
 
 land they are ninnerous\ because it was thought politic not to 
 risk a defeat in the quarter which was ivcak, but to push the 
 attack ia tliat which was stroii^r. They knew well that the one 
 must follow the othrr. They acted wisely for their own ends ; 
 and v.;c^, if v,? r. 'e wise, though somewhat late, must act with 
 the same vigour and concert. In 1 1 eland little more than the 
 citadel remains : in England we have only surrendered the 
 outworks. Let us act accordingly. Let us not be deceived. 
 The party by whom we are pressed have all the spirit of 
 CuDsar, 
 
 *' Nil actum rcputans, si ([uid supercssct a(rendum" 
 Should once the capability of being Chancellors, Judges, and 
 Privy Counsellors, be conceded, can we believe they will be 
 satisfied, unless they actually obtain the possession of those 
 offices ? Surly not ; even now it is avowed that the repre- 
 sentative franchise is sought for as a means of obtaining the 
 nomination to the offices which they are capacitated to enjoy, 
 and from which they complain that they still continue to be, iq 
 almost every instance, shut out. 
 
 One of the most moderate members in Parliament who 
 spoke on this important subject, thus mildly delivered his 
 thoughts. " The truth seems to be, that allowing the Ca- 
 tholics to be good and loyal subjects in their present situation, 
 they have an insatiable thirst for power ; and, 
 
 " How that might change their nature, there's the question." 
 
 — " Grant power. 
 And then I grant we put a sting into them 
 That at their will they .may do danger with," 
 
 " I cannot therefore help doubting at least, whether I should 
 have been disposed, under such imprepsion of still increasing 
 claims upon every accession of favour, to have gone so far in 
 removal of all disabilities as was done in 1793, especially in 
 the instance of the elective francbise. It could not well be 
 doubted by any man, who had a rcc sonable knowledge of 
 human nature, and was aware of the position and views of 
 this particular sect, that the concession here stated would be 
 
 h.^^ 
 
232 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 233 
 
 ^'' \ 
 
 chiefly valued as a step to the right of representation. And 
 who can pretend to be answerable for restrictive mode- 
 ration even there ? Temptation, &c. may be incited by the 
 impulse of seeming means and opportunity, and then, in 
 course, a dormant spirit of uneasy ambition might be roused 
 into dangerous action. 
 
 " Then lest it may — prevent ! 
 And if the quarrel will bear no colour for the things they are, 
 Fashion it tlius ; that what they are, augmented 
 May run to these and these extremities, &c. &c," 
 
 We fnid that nothing hitherto has satisfied them, neither 
 would they be contented with the grant of their present re- 
 quest. This would only interest the mass of the people so 
 far as might serve to pave the way for greater concessions, in 
 which they conceive thcaiselves to be more nearly interested. 
 The effect, therefore, of yielding to the claims now made, 
 would be nothing else than exciting an expectation of some- 
 thing much more material. Can it be believed that the views 
 of the Catholics extend no further ? They certainly look, as 
 the ultimate consequence, to the destruction of the Established 
 Church in Ireland, to the exaltation of theirown priesthood, and 
 to the restoration of those estates which belonged to their 
 forefathers. It is therefore impossible to admit their claims, 
 without annulling the Act of Union, the Act of Settlement, 
 and all the fundamental laws on which the Constitution 
 
 rests. 
 
 Can we persuade ourselves, that the Catholic Clergy have 
 abjured the expectation of being restored to all the dignities 
 which were possessed by their predecessors, previous to the 
 Reformation? Have they not their primate, their archbi- 
 shops, their bishops, their deans, and all the gradations 
 which are to be found in the Establislied Church ? And, 
 knowing this, who will be bold enough to say, that they have 
 relinquished all hopes of enjoying the emoluments appertaining 
 to these dignities? One of their tenets is, (which any member 
 who went into a bookseller's shop, might convince himself 
 of,) that they are bound to i)ay tithes only to their lawful 
 
 pastors. Nay, some persons have carried the principle much 
 farther. A Mr. M*Kenna proposed, in a treatise of much 
 learning and ingenuity, that thirty or forty acres should be 
 purchased in eveiy parish in Ireland, and a house should be 
 built on it for the Catholic clergyman. Is not that a plain in- 
 dication of the extent of their hopes and prospects ? No man 
 can entertain a doubt that it is their inclination to propagate 
 their religion by every means in their power. That is a prin- 
 ciple inseparable from the character of every religion. Were 
 I in a Catholic country, professing the religion I did, I should 
 feel an inclination to advance that religion ; and so it is na- 
 tural to expect the Catholics will do, whenever they have an 
 oppoitunity. 
 
 It is well known, that when they have been passing by our 
 cathedrals and other churches, in Ireland, especially on the 
 Sabbath-day, they have been frequently heaid to say, in an 
 angry, spiteful tone, " I hope the time is not far off, v» hen 
 these d — d Protestants will be extirpated, and we shall be say- 
 ing mass again, where our ancestors used to do." 
 
 Hence it is evident, that those persons argue most absurdly, 
 who plead that, in order to reconcile tl.c Catholics to our Go- 
 vernment, we must accede to their Petition. For they who 
 maintain, as a point of faith, that the State is subject to a 
 foreign jurisdiction, and is not independent, can never be re- 
 conciled to the State. Till they renounce so anarchical and 
 degrading a tenet, they must be always enemies to it; and 
 giving them ;)o//Y/ra//?(/Zier, is only furnishing them with the 
 means of overturning the Constitution. 
 
 The Rev. Richard Venn, in his debate concerning the re- 
 peal of the Corporation and Test acts, thus cruards us against 
 the claims of the Dissenters; and what he says is equally, at 
 least, (if not much more) applicable to the claims of the Ro- 
 man Catholics. " The Church of England neither can nor 
 ought to be easy, if that Establishment, which is ratified by all 
 the laws of God and man, be rendered precarious and unsafe. 
 And that we know will be her case, in proportion as the in- 
 terest of her enemies increases; who, from their principles, can 
 
 Q 
 
 i t 
 
 4^ 
 
 : t'.*^ 
 
 I ' 
 
 : f. 
 
'234 
 
 STKONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 235 
 
 never want iclll to do, whatever their power shall enable them 
 to perform. Since, therefore, from history and theory, we 
 know what we are to expect, we should act like men iniatu- 
 ated, and fall unpitied, if we ever commit ourselves to their 
 care. The more they are indulged, the more they crave ; and 
 what is reported to have been said formerly, by a great mi- 
 nister, of a certain friend of tlicirs, viz., * that he had the 
 quickest di^eation of any ^ent/eman in England,' may be ap- 
 plied, with too much truth, to the perpetual grasping of this 
 people after power. It was the fatal policy of good King 
 Charles's reign, to be always listening to the repeated de- 
 mands of these unsatisfied men, till it appeared that they 
 meant nothing less than the tclul overthrow of Church and 
 State. Let that example be suilicient to teach us caution. 
 We have already granted them what, in conscience, we ought 
 to grant, an ample liberty of worshipping God according to 
 their own sentiments. It is high time now, in our turn, to con- 
 sider where, in prudence, we ought to stop. All Europe has 
 thought it lawful to refuse accession of power, when they 
 are morally certain what use would be made of it. If one side 
 must be superior, (and, in the nature of things, both cannot 
 long be EQUAL,) I hope we are not now to choose where to lix 
 
 the preference.** 
 
 The Papists, in all countries, ever have been, and ever will 
 be inimical to the Protestants ; but, in Ireland, this is more 
 peculiarly the case ; so that it is absurd, in the highest degree, 
 to suppose that we can conciliate their regards, by making the 
 concessions which the Petitioners now require. This is utterly 
 impossible — for they have a particular enmity towards the 
 Protestants there, not only as apostate heretics, but as unjust 
 .usurpers. They look with bitter jealousy on those Protestants 
 who now occupy the lands and houses which once belong^ to 
 their progenitors. It is also matter of notoriety, that diflferent 
 Catholic families have preserv^ed, from one generation to 
 another, the titles of estates, which had been confiscated, at 
 the time of the Revolution ; and they consider the Protestant 
 possessors as little better than lawless robbers. Maps, also, of 
 
 the Irish forfeited estates have been industriously circulated 
 on the Continent, an indication that some important object was 
 looked at for attainment, and that it was desirable to conciliate 
 foreign Catholic potentates, with a view to the success of that 
 project. Since the Union, it has been openly avowed, " that 
 the Revolution was an usurpation, the exclusion of Roman 
 Catholics from seats in Parliament an excess of the power of 
 the Legislature, that the old Roman Catholic proprietors 
 never had oftended, that the confiscations were unjust, and 
 that the present occupants held by usurpation, and ought to be 
 dispossessed." Why ? Truly to produce unanimity, cordial- 
 ity, and affection between the several sectaries in Ireland. 
 Thus, no length of time and enjoyment can sanctify title; no 
 concurrence of circumstances ran preclude re-assumption ; at- 
 taindei-8, acts of Parliament, purchases, settlements, long pos- 
 session, prescription, are to be ineflicient in giving title. The 
 most solemn acts of the Legislature, and of courts of justice, 
 done whilst the transactions were recent, and the evidence 
 existing, which have been acted upon and enforced during suc- 
 cessive ages ; titles created under those acts, and infinitely 
 branched out and diversified for most valuable considerations, 
 are now, wlien the evidence is lost or mislaid, to be presiuned 
 unfounded, contrary to the light of history, and to that con- 
 viction which has, during ages, influenced the conduct of the 
 Parliaments of England and Ireland, and has guided the ac- 
 tions of the most eminent men of those countries, and of the 
 mass of the people. For what purpose ? To overturn every 
 thing which has been deemed solemnly sanctified and settled ; 
 to unsettle the Church, the influence and property of the Pro- 
 testants, and to elevate the members of the Roman Catholic 
 persuasion, upon the depression of those of the Protestant. 
 
 It is supposed, by some persons, that the length of time 
 which has elapsed since making the grants of the forfeited es- 
 tates, imposes insuperable difficulties in the way of Roman 
 Catholics establishing their titles; and that, since the relaxing 
 laws of 1778 and 1781, Roman Catholics have acquired so 
 much property under the titles to the forfeited estates, that, in 
 
 Q ^ 
 
236 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 237 
 
 i 
 
 \4' 
 
 maintaining their own rights, they must defend the titles to 
 those estates, and also, that the Roman Catholics have solemnly 
 disclaimed all title to them. The repeal of the Irish acts of 
 settlement and explanation, and of the English acts of 
 William III. and Anne, relating to forfeited estates, would 
 annul all the Protestant titles founded on them, and expose 
 the possessors to all the hazard, uncertainty, litigation, and ex- 
 pence which might be brought upon them by opposite claims, 
 whether maintained by true or by false evidence. Disposses- 
 sion and ruin would be the consequence to individuals; to the 
 public, the result would be unsettling the property and power 
 of the country. The estates of inheritance, acquired by Ro- 
 man Catholics since the itlaxing hiws, are as yet inconsider- 
 able. The religious zeal of Roman Catholics, holding leases 
 under the forfeited titles, would induce them to think that, 
 if the inheritances were restored to the families of the ancient 
 proprietors, Roman Catholic tenants, assuming the merit of 
 having aided the restitution, might be sure of having their 
 leases confirmed, by landlords of their own persuasion. Thus 
 neither the inheritance nor the derivative interests would pro- 
 tect the Protestant titles against the various incentives which 
 might combine to defeat them. The present laws, aided by 
 a Protestant Government and Protestant Constitution, do pro- 
 tect them. Any other protection would be ineflcctual. Oi 
 what avail would the disclaiming of Roman Catholics be, if 
 they acquired power to enforce their claims, when they have 
 already, since their supposed disclaimer, (though not yet pos- 
 sessed of sufficient power to establish their demands,) revived 
 their claims to the forfeited estates ? How have their stating 
 specific objects, as exclusive of all others, in various trans- 
 actions of the year 1792, prevented unqualified demands in 
 1794, and down to the present period ? If the Roman Ca- 
 tholics were to obtain restitution of the forfeited estates, the 
 country would be ruined. If they failed as to that their main 
 object, conciliation would not be the result of concession. This 
 country never can, consistently with any principle of policy 
 or common sense, give way to the claim of restitution. That 
 
 i6 a great object looked at as the result of power. Separation 
 then of Ireland from Great Britain would, whilst any expec- 
 tation was entertained of procuring restitution, be the only 
 means of obtaining an object otherwise unattainable. That ex- 
 pectation must be repressed, by a prompt and decided resis- 
 tance, demonstrating tlie determination of the State to direct 
 the whole of its force in opposition to the nefarious attempt. 
 
 Mr. Shaw, an Irish member of Parliament, addressing the 
 Speaker, said, ** I deprecate, Mr. Speaker, the remotest idea 
 that I entertain a feeling hostile to my Catholic countrymen, 
 or that I am not as sincerely attached to their real interest as 
 any gentleman who this night supports the Petition on your 
 table. Sir, I know, that if those interests had been honestly 
 and truly consulted, that Petition would not now be under 
 discussion. A subject of such importance, involving such a 
 variety of interests, and exciting such warmth of feeling, 
 would never have been brought forward at such a time as this] 
 nor have been made an instrument to embarrass the execu- 
 tive power, when the completest unanimity within and with-^ 
 out these doors is necessary to oppose the most formidable and 
 malignant enemy that ever threatened our political existence." 
 
 In the House of Lords, also, an Irish nobleman (the Earl of 
 Limerick) thus spoke: ** I mean to confine myself merely to 
 this part of the subject, namely, ivhether this be the fittest time 
 to bring the Petition before Parliament:^ The noble Baion as- 
 serts it is, and at the same time declares, that he esteems the 
 moments he presented it, and argued on its merits, as the 
 happiest of his life. I differ here from the noble Lord ; our 
 opinions are far as the poles asunder. What, my Lords, 
 this the fittest time to agitate a question which rouses every 
 passion, and calls into action eveiy civil and religious preju- 
 dice ; this the fittest time, when the United Kingdom is as- 
 sailed on all sides l)y the most formidable enemies, and when, 
 at the moment that I am speaking, French emissaries are 
 traversing Ireland in every direction, announcing an immediate 
 invasion of that island, and promising to those who shall joiu 
 
 t-L. * 
 
 III 
 
i 
 
 -238 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 239 
 
 I 
 
 P 
 
 * I 
 
 them the establishment of their rehgion, and the property of 
 those lands which they now hold as farmers ?" 
 
 How, then, are we to counteract the machinations both of 
 our internal and external foes ? It can only be done by the most 
 peremptory refusal of the Catholic claims. If, in this point, 
 we are unalterably firm and resolute, the Catholics may be- 
 come more peaceable and friendly; but, if they find us waver- 
 ing and irresolute, this will fill them with hopes that they may 
 yet prevail ; and, consequently, they will be the more urgent, 
 refractory, and rebellious. Persons who have lost their sight 
 or their limbs, become, after a while, reconciled to the loss ; 
 and even long conlinement in a prison, where no expectation 
 of release is aflbrded, is at last borne with a good degree of 
 patience. But if, by importunate application for deliverance, 
 they are led to think they shall obtain it, they will then grow 
 impatient, clamorous and troublesome ; and though you may 
 endeavour to alleviate their sulferings, by several acts ofkind- 
 dess, yet, if you do not set th^^m at full liberty, they will neither 
 be reconciled to you, nor to their situation. 
 
 In this light the Honorable Mr. Foster seemed to view the 
 motion for '* Catholic Emancipation ;" and, therefore, when rea- 
 soning with those who made and supported the motion, and 
 urged that the reconciliation of Ireland would be the happy 
 consequence of granting the Emancipation, he addressed them 
 thus — " When you talk of conciliating Ireland, you have for- 
 gotten to tell us where the discontent is. I know the country 
 well, and I do not see it any where. If any gentleman has 
 seen it (and there are Irish representatives present from all 
 parts) I wish he would get up and state it. No — Ireland is 
 content, if you will not agitate her with ill-timed discussions ; 
 and I will venture to say, that the rejection of this demand to- 
 night will not cause a discontented thought, except in those 
 very fete, whose ambition has been buoyed up by the vain and 
 selfish hopes of power, and personal influence.'* 
 
 Here Mr. Foster alludes particularly to the Petitioners. I 
 shall therefore take notice of one arsjument which has been 
 
 used, in favour of them, but which, in my opinion, operates 
 directly against them. It has been said, that Ireland will be 
 lost to us, if the Catholic claims be not granted. Am I then • 
 to understand, that they will desert their duty, and refuse to 
 defend their country, if their wishes be not gratified ? Does, 
 then, their allegiance sit so loose upon them ? But I cannot 
 think that any such consequence would follow ; and I hope 
 they have a deeper sense of their duty. If, however, their ad- 
 vocates continue to assert, that Ireland will be lost, if their 
 claims be rejected, I must insist upon it, that they whose al- 
 legiance is so easily perverted, are the last men in the world 
 to be entrusted with any political power. 
 
 It has been suggested, also, that the adoption of the mea- 
 sures proposed would settle all differences, and produce a cor- 
 dial union of all parties. If this were to be the case, I my- 
 self would-be one of its warmest defenders ; but I have no 
 hopes whatever of its being attended with such beneficial ef- 
 fects. On the contrary, I am persuaded it would be the foun- 
 dation of perpetual party disputes — a focus of inflammable 
 matter, and the more dangerous, because the lowest, as well 
 as the highest classes, would be involved in the general fer- 
 ment: and both Catholics and Protestants, having separate 
 interests, that spirit of rivalship and jealousy which unfortu- 
 nately subsists between them, w^ould be greatly encreased. 
 Let us only advert to the resolutions which were lately 
 passed in Galway and other counties, not to elect any per- 
 son a member of Parliament, who would not promise to vote 
 for Catholic Emancipation — then I ask, what w^ould the Ca- 
 tholics think of the Protestants, if they were to come to 
 counter resolutions, and determine to elect none who would 
 not promise to pursue an opposite line of conduct ? What a 
 scene of confusion, riot, and bloodshed, might this occasion! 
 
 If, then, this would, in all likelihood, be the case, how can 
 any true Protestant be accessary in promoting it, by coinci- 
 ding with the Catholic projects? Sir Williaiij Scott lately 
 spoke very feelingly in the House upon this point. " That 
 the question should be so often . brought forward, was ta 
 
 ft" 
 
 
It 
 
 "I 
 
 240 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 241 
 
 1^. 
 
 M? 
 
 
 •(( 
 
 I r 
 
 
 him a matter of most serious concern. The repeated debates 
 about it only roused the turbulent passions, and kept the 
 .public mind in a constant ferment. It was a question 
 fraught with danger to the nation ; one which hazarded 
 setting fire to the country. If there appeared any probabi- 
 lity of the parties coming to an agreement, he coultT see 
 the propriety of this course ; but after the repeated deter- 
 minations of the House on the subject, one of them not 
 many weeks old, how could it be expected that the deci- 
 sion should now be different? He had heard it said that 
 this thing inust be done,— that the danger of refusal was 
 so great, that it 7mtst not be encountered. The answer 
 to this was, that Parliament had said it should not be done ; 
 and what, therefore, could be the object of perpetually 
 agitating this question, but to keep up a perpetual war 
 between the Petitioners and the Legislature — between the 
 Catholics and the Protestants? It had been admitted, by 
 those who were competent to speak to the point, that neither 
 in Ireland, nor in this country, was the public mind made 
 up to the granting of these privileges, and they could not 
 be granted without causing a convulsion. He should venture 
 to refer it to any man's observation, that the public mind had 
 not altered on the subject.** 
 
 It has been indeed alleged, that some petitions have been 
 presented to Parliament, signed by Protestants, in favour of 
 the Irish Catholics. But every one must know, what an easy 
 matter it is to obtain signatures to any paper, for almost any 
 purpose, at the request of respectable gentlemen. It is certain 
 also, that an unwillingness to disoblige or otfend, in some— 
 that the motives of self-interest, in others— and, particularly, 
 that the fear (in a case like the present) lest a n^an's life or pro- 
 perty might be endangered by refusal, operate very strongly in 
 producing compliance. Hence, it was positively asserted in Par- 
 liament, that many of the Protestant shop-keepers were induced 
 to sign the petitions, being threatened with the loss of their 
 customers— and that, in some instances, farmers were com- 
 pelled to put down their nayies, as they were told, by those 
 
 emissaries who carried about the petitions, that otliervvise 
 their houses and goods would be set on fire. 
 
 The following circumstance seems to claim particular atten- 
 tion. ** At a meeting,** lately, " of the Committee of the 
 Roman Catholics, of the county and city of Cork,*' it was 
 " resolved, that in the Resolutions adopted by the noblemen 
 and gentlemen, assembled at the Thatched House in London, 
 on the 2nd instant. Earl Fitzwilliam in the chair, we view a 
 grateful precedent of sound reason and liberal policy, which 
 taugjit them, and will, we trust, demonstrate to every land- 
 pro[)i ietor in this kingdom, that the firmest huhcark of private 
 interest^ is, the removal of public grievances" Now, is not 
 this a plain intimation, in other words, that if the Protestant 
 owners of land in Ireland, do not exert themselves to remove 
 the " public grievances,** of which the Catholics complain, 
 their own " private interest'* will be endangered, and even 
 their lives and estates be insecure ? I am well persuaded, there- 
 fore, that in countenancing the Catholic cause, many of the 
 wealthy Irish Protestants have been only actuated by the fear^ 
 of losing their temporal possessions. In these times of general 
 commotion and revolution, they know not what convulsions 
 may take place in Ireland; and therefore they think their 
 safest plan is, to favour those who, by their superior numbers, 
 and incessant perseverance, may yet prove the stronger party, 
 and by whom they may be favoured, in return. 
 
 But, uiKiuestionably, the voice of the people, in both coun- 
 tries, is decidedly against the Catholics. In several of the 
 counties of Ireland, the Petitions have been univergally con- 
 demned; and, though some of the Presbyterian ministers did 
 sign them, yet, in consequence of it, they were turned out of 
 their meeting-houses, the doors locked up, and themselves 
 excluded for ever. 
 
 Returning now to the topic of conciliation so much insisted 
 on, " If, by that expression, is meant the givins^ satisfaction^ 
 why*' (said Mr. Foster to his fellow-members) " do you look 
 to the Catholics only, and forget that there is a million of Pro- 
 tistants} Will they be satisfied ^ by your breaking down the 
 
 j: \ 
 
542 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CI/AIMS. 
 
 243 
 
 
 I- % 
 ' • -It 1 
 
 
 
 i« 
 
 HI 
 
 barriers which secure their protection ? Remember that you 
 have settled us in Ireland, under the faith of that protection^ 
 that on that faith, we claim, as our inheritance, all the bless- 
 ings of that glorious Constitution, which our ancestors and 
 yours have fought and bled for— the Hanover succession ; the 
 illustrious House of Brunswick on the throne; a Protestant 
 King, with Protestant Counsellors; Protestant Lords, and Pro- 
 testant Commons. This is what I call Protestant ascendency, 
 in the true sense of the phrase, and while I can utter my voice 
 in this House, I will ever demand it for my country. 
 
 " If, then, by granting this Petition, you endanprer, or even 
 alarm the Protestants, instead of satisfaction, dissatisfaction 
 must be the result of the measure. And among whom? 
 among those, who are, and ever have been, loyal both to 
 Church and State, and who swear allegiance to both, which 
 those whom you desire. to admit as legislators decline. Who, 
 then, does not see the futility of the only argument dwelt upon, 
 in behalf of the Catholic claims ?" 
 
 We" should always bear in mind, that there are two des* 
 criptions of persons in Ireland; and then ask ourselves, will 
 the Protestants there be pleased, that the Union which they 
 carried into effect should be dissolved? Will they who 
 presei-ved that couutiy to this, be satisfied at the thought of 
 its being dissevered ? " It seems" (said a member in the 
 Upper House) as if noble Lords had forgotten such people 
 existed ; I have not heard mention of them from any one of 
 them ; a people by whose loyalty and courage, in a situa- 
 tion unparalleled, that kingdom was secured ; whose con- 
 duct w^as never equalled by any description of men in any 
 countiy. Why, then, what must done? I say, * Let the 
 Union alone' — let it work, as it has begun, the settlement 
 of that country, and let not the operations of that great mea- 
 sure be impeded, by bringing the Catholics forward at an 
 unfit season, to be made the tool and sport of British fac- 
 tions.** 
 
 Let us only consider what would be the alienating opera- 
 tion of the repeal of the fifth article of the Union ? Is it not 
 
 greatly to be feared that the eff*ect of it would be to destroy 
 that tranquillity which many profess they are so anxious 
 to maintain ? 
 
 But the fact is, that, with some of them, their kind solici- 
 tude is only apparent. I am persuaded there are men despe- 
 rate enough to set at nought a general convulsion, if they ca» 
 but worry a minister, by bringing forward a subject, in the 
 discussion of which they conceive he may be embarrassed, 
 and the measures of Government impeded, by the obstacles 
 which they are so mischievous as to throw in the way. The 
 conviction of this made a nobleman, who is a native of Ire- 
 land, and a true patriot, thus pathetically exclaim, in the 
 House of Lords — " Why is our country to be made the arena 
 on which contending parties are to wage war against each 
 other ? Oh, my unfortunate country ! are you never to be 
 at rest ? I conjure the agitators of this measure to reflect 
 ere it be too late : stir not a fire that is smothered but not 
 extinguished ; the slightest spark may kindle into a blaze. Is 
 it not sulFicient that, in the short space of fifteen years, my, 
 poor country has been racked by conspiracies, disgraced by 
 every crime contained in the roll of human wickedness, 
 affrighted by invasions, and shaken to the very centre by 
 civil and religious distractions ? Is it not enough that we have 
 sacrificed our pride as an independent nation, and our import- 
 ance and influence as individuals, to procure, if possible, for 
 our distracted land the blessings of peace and security ? We 
 embraced a Union to protect us from ourselves ; make not 
 what we considered and hoped would prove a measure of 
 safety, make it not, I say, a measure of mischief 2ind disquiet,'^ 
 
 Let it be well remembered, that, to conciliation and unani- 
 mity there must be tico parties — the Roman Catholics, and 
 all the Protestants of the entire empire ; and their mutual con- 
 currence will scarcely be obtained, by holding out to the 
 Roman Catholics the possibility that, by unwearied exertions 
 on their part, their laity may be restored to the forfeited lay 
 property, their Ecclesiastics to the Church lands, the suprc^ 
 macy of the Pope be established, and a Roman Catholic as- 
 
244 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 tllE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 245 
 
 
 «l 
 
 tH 
 
 l.t 
 
 i 
 
 cendencybe substituted, in the place of the Protestant ascen- 
 dency, and by conveyijig to the Protestants the idea that what- 
 soever the Roman CathoUcs gain, the Protestants must lose. 
 
 In many places now, though Protestants have the chief 
 administration of the law, they are scarcely safe ; and, surely, 
 ^heir situation must be far more dangerous, if they should be 
 divested of the power they now enjoy, or be even obliged to 
 act, as magistrates, in conjunction with bigoted and domi- 
 neering Catholics. At best, both parties must be uncomfort- 
 able, because there can be no cordiality or agreement between 
 them. 
 
 In such a posture of atVairs, therefore, a compliance 
 with the Petition would be the worst thing which could 
 befal the Roman Catholics, as well as ourselves. The imme- 
 diate effect of it would be, to revive that detestable rancour 
 between both, which for so many years has been the disgrace 
 of the western Church, but is dying away if we only let alone 
 what is well. 
 
 There is already too much cause for discontent. If the 
 Protestants are even now uneast/, how much greater will be 
 their alarm and consternation, should the Catholics, who are 
 above double their number, gain an accession of civil power 
 and authority? " In a very large portion of Ireland, at 
 this day, (said Lord Redesdale,) there could hardly be said to 
 exist such a person as a Protestant day-labourer. No one of 
 that persuasion could expect to be otherwise than miserably 
 treated by all his neighbours, who were Catholics. It was 
 true he had the sanction of the law for his profession ; but, 
 in Ireland, the laws were not enforced as they ought to be; 
 there were many and deplorable defects in that particular ; 
 and they were chietly owing to the power and influence of 
 the Catholic hierarchy. It was the interest of that hierarchy 
 (and they pursued that interest) to create a spirit of animo- 
 sity in the people of Ireland against the Protestants ; the con- 
 sequence was, that there existed among the mass of the 
 people of Ireland, who were such Catholics as he had stated, 
 a general hatred against the English name ; and an English 
 
 government and tyranny, or an Encjlishman and an heretic, 
 were with th^ni synonymous terms ; so that it was impos- 
 sible, consistently with thesaftty of the Protestants of Ireland, 
 to grant the prayer of this Petition. He would venture to say, 
 that if the prayer of this Petition were granted, the result 
 would be, that, except in part of the North of Ireland, and 
 perhaps the Capital of that country, no Protestant would dare 
 to live in it,. This he had from information which could not 
 be doubted ; for a reverend prelate had told him, that he 
 could not keep one Protestant servant, and much of this came 
 under his own view. He knew that none of the Protestant 
 inhabitants of Dublin, who were parents, could get their 
 children into the sei*vice of any considerable family, so that 
 they were obliged to apprentice them out to handicrafts. 
 Such was the disposition of the Catholics, for whom this 
 extraordinary' indulgence was now asked, that none of the 
 Protestant children could find employment in the service of 
 any considerable family in Dublin, and this was the case 
 generally all over Ireland. He considered that the proposed, 
 measure of what was called relief to the Catholics, was so far 
 from being likely to conciliate the people of Ireland, that it 
 would have the effect, if agreed to, of driving out of Ireland 
 all the Protestants ; for until the present hierarchy of Ireland 
 should be in possession of all the ecclesiastical revenues there, 
 it was not to be supposed !!iat they would be contented ; and 
 having gone so far in asking, if they v/ere successful, it was 
 not to be supposed that they would not go further." 
 
 No, certainly — I solemnly believe that their views and 
 their expectations have no bounds. I speak of them in 
 general, subject to such exceptions as every man will make. 
 And I appeal to the history of past years, to the spirit of 
 their religion, and to the experience wliich we have had of 
 its operations. 
 
 Much indeed has been said, of strengthening^ the empire, by 
 conciliating the Catholics; but much more might be said with 
 justice, of tceakening the empire, if not dismembering it, by 
 grieving and offending the Protestants. For a short time, per- 
 
 il-^ 
 
 m 
 
I 
 
 
 
 )f 
 
 11. 1 • 
 
 pi 
 
 hi 
 
 
 246 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 haps, Ireland might be tranquillized ; but that calm would be 
 followed by a tempest of the most dreadful violence. The 
 more was given, the more would be required. The Catholics 
 would aspire still higher, and Ireland would present a mi- 
 serable scene of unrestrained struggle for power between the 
 Catholics and the Protestants, ending in the ruin of numbers 
 of both parties. 
 
 To prevent this dreadful catastrophe, let us attend to the 
 opinion of a very sensible member of Parliament upon this 
 head. " Well convinced (says he) that, at this period, it would 
 plunge that countiy into confusion, I am decidedly against it. 
 I should be glad to ask, if it is likely to tend to the pacifica- 
 tion of a country, composed of two very different sorts of peo- 
 ple, the one possessed of the property, and the magistracy, few 
 in number, contending and protecting themselves against the 
 more numerous class, to open every situation as a scene of 
 contest? I consider the first operation of this measure to be, 
 to make Ireland a scene of confusion, corruption, and riot, not 
 only for Parliament, but for magistracy, and situations in all 
 the towns, as described by Lucan, 
 
 Lethe lisque ambitus urbis 
 
 Annua venali referens certamina campo. 
 
 The priest at the head of his flock, leading, them to every out- 
 rage, and religious bigotry carried to the utmost extent. The 
 power of the Protestant landlords would have no eftect against 
 a religious combination. 
 
 " Next, what are the causes of the discontents in Ireland ? 
 High rents, heavy taxes, tithes, the property possessed by per- 
 sons speaking a dilleient language, of ditferent manners and 
 habits from the peasantry, a double Clergy, the Protestant 
 Clergy in affluence, tlie Catholic in poverty. May I ask, 
 which of the grievances will the proposed measure touch ? 
 Will it lower rents or taxes ? Will it alter the state of pro- 
 perty ? Will it teach the landlords Irish, or the peasants En- 
 glish ? Will it lower tithes? Will it make the Protestant 
 Clergy low, and raise the Catholic priest ? Probably it may, 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 247 
 
 and here is the difliculty. If this operates lightly and gently, 
 it will not affect the mass of the country ; if it operates to af- 
 fect the mass, it may be to such an extent as to prove fatal 
 to the British connexion.'* 
 
 Is it not of far greater consequence to England, to unite the 
 Protestant part of Ireland with us, in still firmer bonds of 
 alliance ? Respect, I entreat you, the feelings of that body, 
 ever true to their religion, faithful to their King, and enthusi- 
 astically attached to British connexion. Descended from 
 yourselves, in fighting valiantly their own battles, they have 
 served your interests; and have prevented, by their exertions, 
 that fair and beautiful island from being torn from the British 
 empire. In seeking ?ieic friends, whom you are never likely to 
 conciliate, neglect not your old ones, but remain firm to those 
 who have, in the worst of times, remained firm to you. 
 
 They well know the consequences of the concession re- 
 quired, and, trembling for the issue, are almost all adveise to 
 it. Have, then, their feelinsrs been consulted ? Have their 
 opinions been taken ? < Can you possibly make them believe, 
 that they shall be more or equally secure with Romish repre- 
 sentatives, Romish magistrates, and Romish members of the 
 Cabinet? Is it of no moment that such favours shewn to the 
 opposite party may fill them with disgust and apprehension? 
 That they may be driven into disaffection, that their zeai may 
 abate ? Or that they may be induced to take irregular means 
 for the warding off of the danger, which they may imagine 
 they see coming upon them, and not without reason ? 
 
 I trust, indeed, that, under all circumstances, they would 
 continue hyal and peaceab/c ; I trust it the more, because in 
 them every religious sentiment cooperates with their civil en- 
 gagements, to keep them stedfast in their allegiance to the 
 King, and submission to the law. Yet, when we hear one set 
 of people demanding an attention to be paid to their feelings, 
 1 think it but natural and just, that the same claim should be 
 advanced in behalf of the other ; more especially in a case 
 where the experience of ages is all on our side ; where it un- 
 
 i-i 
 
248 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 249 
 
 i? f- 
 
 hi 
 
 1 
 
 m\ 1 
 I* 1 
 
 
 I 
 
 equivocally establishes the merits of the latter, but deposes as 
 strongly against t\\Q. pretensions of the former. 
 
 Every one, then, who takes a deliberate and impartial view 
 of this subject, must be led to conclude, that compliance with 
 the Petitioners^ instead of tranquiWuing, will convulse the 
 kingdoniof Ireland— instead of cementing the Union, it will 
 promote a separation. Let us not, therefore, be so mad, at 
 such a moment, as even to hazard the horrors and the miseries 
 of religious contests. To me it clearly appears, that no alter- 
 native exists between keeping the Establishment we have, and 
 substituting a Roman Catholic Establishment in its place. If 
 the English nation can make up their minds to that, they may 
 conciliate Ireland, but not otherwise. What then is to be 
 done? Give the Catholics plainly to understand, that poli- 
 tical power to unsettle the State is altogether unattainable ; 
 and that the dangerous consequences of pursuing projects of 
 innovation, in violation of the law, and in opposition to the 
 Protestants of the empire, neither can nor icii/ be risked. Let 
 no countenance whatever be given to their hopes, that the 
 obscurity, which for the present intercepts their views, may at 
 some favourable crisis clear off, and be removed. Let them 
 be told, that the concessions they now seek may prove fatal 
 to themselves, by tempting them (as has hitherto been the case) 
 into struggles for ascendency, which must necessarily lead 
 Government to abridge, or totally deprive them of, the privi- 
 leges they now enjoy. 
 
 Assuredly, the best mode of preventing disturbance, and of 
 promoting union, (objects which the Petitioneis declare to be 
 primary and paramount,) will be to keep from the Roman Ca- 
 tholics the ahilitijy and in consequence the will, to restore to 
 the Pope that supremacy of which he has been deprived. For 
 as long as they have a hope, that, by the preponderance which 
 they may regain in Ireland, (and which they now appear to be 
 confident of attaining,) they have a way opened to them of 
 restoring the doujinion to their Church, they are not likely io 
 be peaceable subjects, nor cordially attached to their Govern- 
 
 ment. On the contrary, their attachment to Rome will be fed 
 by tiieir hopes, and it is only by cutting off those hopes, that 
 we i 4 b'lng them to fix their views at home, and seriously to 
 cons- w -t the Constitution has declared, and which I firmly 
 believt t^ie true interest of the State, and of the Peti- 
 
 tioners t. ; selves. 
 
 Perhaps tnis can never actually take place, so long as they 
 continue in the least degree to acknowledge the supremacy of 
 the Pope ; but certainly the less of probability they see of 
 establishing that supremacy in these kingdoms, the less will 
 their mind be occupied by it. If they could be brought to 
 dismiss all expectations of it, we might then have a reasonable 
 prospect of seeing them united to us, not only in allegiance to 
 their Sovereign, but in religious faith. Once cut off from the 
 See of Rome, I am persuaded that they could not long persist 
 in the schism which separates them from the national Church. 
 And this is, indeed, what the Popes themselves have shewn to 
 be their opinion; for it sliould never be forgotten that, during 
 the early period of the Reformation, and for the first nine or 
 ten years of the reign of Elizabeth, the Roman Catholics went 
 to our churches, and joined in our service.* 
 
 About forty-five years ago, an apologist for the Roman Ca- 
 tholics dropped a broad hint, that they will never quit the 
 hope, that some Pretender may be raised up, to extricate them 
 from their distresses, and to reinstate them in their lost civil 
 and religious rights, which they imagine we have unlawfully 
 usurped. — ** Hope," says he, " how vain soever, is the last smil- 
 ing solace that quits a man, before he resigns his breath. As a 
 balsam to his woes, he will figure to himself that the hand 
 which was the cause of his being depressed, might again be 
 instrumental towards lifting him up : so that a Pretender will 
 never be wanting to those who chuse to create one, though 
 every one of the House of Stuart was as extinct in life, as in 
 
 ♦See Fuller's Church History, and*Heyliu's Tracts—Pre- 
 face to first Tract. 
 
 3 , 
 
iif 
 
 248 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 249 
 
 
 in 
 
 [I 
 
 "t 
 
 
 i^* 
 
 equivocally establishes the ;>2er/f^ of the latter, but deposes as 
 strongly against the pretensions of the former. 
 
 Every one, then, who takes a deliberate and impartial view 
 of this subject, must be led to conclude, that compliance with 
 the Petitioners, instead of tranquillhing, will convulse the 
 kingdom oflreland— instead of ctmentino; the Union, it will 
 promote a separation. Let us not, therefore, be so mad, at 
 such a moment, as even to hazard the horrors and the miseries 
 of religious contests. To me it clearly appears, that no alter- 
 native exists between keeping the Establishment we have, and 
 substituting a Roman Catholic Establishment in its place. If 
 the English nation can make up their minds to that, they may 
 conciliate Ireland, but not otherwise. What then is to be 
 done?^ Give the Catholics plainly to understand, that poll- 
 tical power to unsettle the State is altogether unattainable ; 
 and that the dangerous consequences of pursuing projects ot 
 innovation, in violation of the law, and in opposiiion to the 
 Protestants of the empire, neither can nor iciil be riske<l. Let 
 no countenance whatever be given to their hopes, that the 
 obscurity, which for the present intercepts their views, may at 
 some favourable crisis clear olV. and be removed. Let them 
 be told, that the concessions they now seek may prove tatal 
 to themselves, by tempting them (as has hitherto been the case) 
 into struggles for ascendency, which must necessarily lead 
 Government to abridge, or totally deprive them of, the privi- 
 
 leges they now enjoy. 
 
 Assuredly, the best mode of preventing disturbance, and of 
 promoting union, (objects which the Petitioneis declare to be 
 primary and paramount,) will be to keep from the Roman Ca- 
 tholics the abilitij, and in consequence the it'///, to restore to 
 the Pope that supremacy of which he has been deprived. For 
 as long as they have a hope, that, by the preponderance which 
 they may regain in Ireland, (and which they now appear to be 
 confident of attaining,) they have a way opened to them of 
 restoring the dominion to their Church, they are not likely to 
 be peac'eable subjects, nor cordially attached to ilitu' Govern- 
 
 ment. On the contrary, their attachment to Rome will be fed 
 b; uieir hopes, and it is only by cutting off those hopes, that 
 we t iiig them to fix their views at home, and seriously to 
 cons 'A t the Constitution has declared, and which I firmly 
 believt, le true interest of the State, and of the Peti- 
 
 tioners t. selves. 
 
 Perhaps tuis can never actually take place, so ling as they 
 continue in the least degree to acknowledge the supremacy of 
 the Pope ; but certainly the less of probability they see of 
 establishing that supremacy in these kingdoms, the less will 
 their mind be occupied by it. If they could be brought to 
 dismiss all expectations of it, we might then have a reasonable 
 prospect of seeing them united to us, not only in allegiance to 
 their Sovereign, but in religious faith. Once cut oft' from the 
 See of Rome, I am persuaded that they could not long persist 
 in the schism which separates them from the national Church. 
 And this is, indeed, what the Popes themselves have shewn to 
 be their opinion; for it sliould never be forgotten that, during 
 the early period of the Reformation, and for the first nine or 
 ten years of the reign of Elizabeth, the Roman Catholics went 
 to our churches, and joined in our service.* 
 
 About forty-five years ago, an apologist for the Roman Ca- 
 tholics dropped a broad hint, that they will never quit the 
 hope, that some Pretender may be raised up, to extricate them 
 from their distresses, and to reinstate them in their lost civil 
 and religious rights, which they imagine we have unlawfully 
 usurped. ** Hope,*' says he, " hoic vain soever, is the last smil- 
 ing solace that quits a man, before he resigns his breath. As a 
 balsam to his woes, he will figure to himself that the hand 
 which was the cause of his being depressed, might again be 
 instrumental towards lifting him up : so that a Pretender will 
 never be wanting to those who chuse to create one, though 
 every one of the House of Stuart was as extinct in life, as in 
 
 * See Fuller's Church History, and 'Heylin*s Tracts- 
 face to first Tract. 
 
 -Prc- 
 
 R 
 
550 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 It 
 
 THE CATHOMC CLAIMS. 
 
 251 
 
 H; 
 
 
 t'. 
 
 it 
 
 H 
 
 I 
 
 law, to the people of Great Britain and Ireland.'' Jiist'j\ 
 
 Piece, p. 186, 187. 
 
 Hence, by the confession of this Popish writer, it appears, 
 that the British and Irish Catholics will never be without a 
 Popish Pretender, to oppose to a Protestant Kintr, whenever a 
 likely opportunity shall present itself, for attempting to recover 
 their lost dominion. But [ trust, that "the hand" of Parlia- 
 ment, ** which has been the cause of their being depressed," 
 will " never again be instrumental towards lifting them up," 
 
 ut will rather shew them that their hope is vain. And 1 also 
 trust, that the well-meaning Catholics of Ireland will see and 
 be convinced, that the sense of Parliament is pronounced 
 against their application, upon grounds of immutable truth and 
 reason, but at the same time, with all that good-will and af- 
 fection which ought to j;revail between subjects of the same 
 Sovereign. 
 
 SECTION X. 
 
 The Catholics have not been a peaceable and loyal People, since 
 the Revolution; but, turbulent, refractory, and rebellious, 
 continually \>\otting against the Establishment, and frequently 
 emhruing their hands in the blood of inoffensive Protestants, 
 
 In justification of their claims, even pleas of merit in the 
 modern race of Romish subjects, have been advanced ; and 
 first, that they have conducted themselves peaceably and loyal- 
 ly, ever since the Revolution, though under the pressure of 
 rigorous, impoverishing, and disqualifying statutes. This sub- 
 ject deserves consideration. When the Romish scheme of 
 subverting the Protestant Establishment in Church and State, 
 under the conduct, patronage, and influence of the bigoted 
 
 monarch who then swayed the British sceptre, was complete- 
 Iv overturned by the spirit of the nation, (raised and directed 
 by the renowned William III.) the political power and conse- 
 quence of the Roman Catholics in Great Britain were annihi- 
 lated; and, in Ireland, brought to a very low ebb, on account 
 of the obstinate resistance of the Irish Papists. In England, 
 their dwarf sh number, compared with the gigantic multitude of 
 Protestants, ensured the political impotence of the sect : but 
 the case was ditferent in Ireland ; for the Papists there much 
 exceeded the other subjects in number (though not in the 
 magnified ratio stated in their own inflated accounts), which 
 prevented their sinking into national imbecility. Their deci- 
 sive defeat, however, at that period, greatly reduced their po- 
 litical weight ; and, though fallen to the earth in both king- 
 doms, yet their reiterate<l conspiracies and rebellions induced 
 the State to guard against their acquisition of new strength, 
 Antaeus like, after their fall.* Hence sprang the system of 
 what are called Popery-laws, in both countries, enacted since 
 
 * To give a circumstantial detail of the disturbances this 
 unquiet spirit of Popery has given to our Civil Government, 
 from the Revolution to the present times, would carry me to a 
 tedious and a needless prolixity. Large extracts in proof of 
 this perpetual agitation in bigoted minds, li/ce the troubled 
 sea which cannot rest, might be given from our domestic his- 
 tories, and to these I must refer such as desire to have a more 
 particular account. 
 
 The defeat of the more open elforts of Popery to overturn 
 our Constitution, namely, the suppression of the rebellion in 
 174(i, kept the Roman Catholics for a while i:ia slate of appa- 
 rent acquiescence. It was necessary, upon such an event, to 
 conceal their sense of that disappointment, that they might 
 not too much exasperate their loyal fellow-subjects, as yet full 
 of a generous resentment for this instance of Popish nigrati- 
 tude to one of the best of Princes. Yet even, during this seem- 
 ingly pacific inteiTal, Popish industry was secretly busy in 
 prq)aring a mine, acrainst the time when a new succession of 
 men (who, for want of experience, and unapprised of the 
 genius and spirit of Popery, might be Ilss vigilant over the 
 precious deposit of civil and religious liberty) should give 
 these dark wcwking engineers an opportunity to spring it. 
 

 
 11 f 
 
 b i • • •'■■ 
 
 ■J ji ■■. 
 
 m 
 
 1^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 352 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 the Revolution; and which never would have been enacted, 
 had there not been urgent necessity. And yet these laws, by 
 Popish writers, and the supporters of Popery throughout the 
 empire, are represented {IS oppressive and unjust; and as the 
 causes of the notorious disatVection of the Romanists to the 
 State, and of their different conspiracies, massacres, and rebel- 
 lions. Bat, this is a gross misrepresentation ; for that part 
 of the code particularly complained of as unjust and oppres- 
 sive, was enacted in the reigns of William and Anne, after their 
 conspiracies, massacres, and rebellions had been plotted and 
 executed ; and therefore was the effect, and not the cause, of 
 their notorious disatiection and treasons. And these laws 
 could not hiive been the causes of the /ate rebellions and mas- 
 sacres in Ireland, for they had been all previously repealed. 
 
 These wise laws (foQwise iiud provident they were, notwith- 
 standing the false and clamorous declamations against them) 
 prohibited Romanists from the acfjuisition of landed property, 
 political influence, and poiccr, in both countries ; and thereby 
 disabled them, in a great measure, from disturbing the State, 
 in conformity with their avowed principles. Whilst these 
 laws remained unrepealed^ the Romanists were more peaceable 
 saJbjects than they noio are, because it was not in their power 
 to be otherwise. The maniac in a strait waistcoat, or the tiger 
 in a cage, can do no mischief; yet deserve no commendation for 
 their gentleness. The British ministry, however, intluenced by 
 active and able Romish agents, and imposed upon by the 
 grossest falsehoods and misstatements (which have had a 
 powerful effect on them, from their own absolute ignorance of 
 the true state of Ireland), have, for these last twenty years and 
 upw^ards, exerted all their influence in the Irish Parliament to 
 procure the rejoea/ of these laws, session after session, and have, 
 in a great measure, succeeded ; though they have not yet pro- 
 cured the repeal of the Poper^-code in England, in the same 
 degree. In this respect, they treated the Irish nation in the way 
 that condemned malefactors have been sometimes treated, on 
 whom dangerous experiments in physic and surgery have been 
 tried before their general application is sanctioned to the pub- 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 153 
 
 lie. The Englisli ministiy, not content, in the year 1793, 
 with procuring a bdl to pass in the Irish Parliament, for re- 
 pealing all the laws which disabled RomLnists to vote at 
 elections of members of Parliament, prefaced the bill with an 
 assertion that the conduct of the Romanists had been loijal. 
 Whoever will take the trouble of turning to the Irish acts of the 
 19th of George I [. of the •29th of George II. and to all the acts 
 passed in Ireland for twenty years preceding the year 1793, (for 
 the suppression of the petty rebellions of the Whiteboys and de- 
 fenders, all Romanists, who have from time to time infested and 
 desolated several parts of Ireland, committing the most atro- 
 cious acts of treason,) will be clearly convinced that the Irish 
 Romanists have no claim whatever to the character of loyal 
 subjects, from the time of the Revolution to the era of their 
 late rebellion. 
 
 But supposing it were admitted, for argument's sake, that 
 Romanists have been generally peaceable subjects, from the 
 Revolution till a few years before the breaking out of the late, 
 rebellion, f loyal it cannot be pretended that they were, their * 
 avowed principle of the subjection of the nation to a foreign 
 yoke being disloyal) ; they can derive no merit from such 
 peaceable demeanour. The Popery-code rendered their sub- 
 mission to the laws a matter of necessity ; they were peaceable 
 because they were disabled, in a great measure, from exerting 
 their avowed hostility to the Constitution, by the efficacy of 
 the Popery-code ; and nothing more clearly demonstrates the 
 truth of this conclusion than this fact, which cannot be de- 
 nied, that they have advanced, in their march of sedition and 
 treason, at the same rate of progr^sion, as the English mi- 
 nistry proceeded in Ireland with the repeal of the Popery- 
 code ; and they broke out into open rebellion, and com- 
 menced a massacre of the Protestants of Ireland, very shortly 
 after a great part of that code was repealed, and they were 
 admitted to an equality of civil privileges with Protestants, — 
 the capacity of sitting in Parliament, and enjoying some great 
 civil offices, excepted. 
 Can any circumstance carry a more decisive propf of the 
 
 i 
 

 254 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS, 
 
 255 
 
 ii 
 
 i ' 
 
 
 wisdom of the Popery-code, and of the folly of repealing it, 
 than the actual consequence of that repeal just mentioned? 
 And can any thing be more clear than the insufticiency of the 
 claim of merit among Romanists, on the score of their pmc table 
 and loyal conduct since the Revolution? Loyalty certainly they 
 never had the slightest claim to ; their avowed religious prin- 
 ciples are disloyal. To peaceable conduct their claim is also 
 ill-founded in general; and where it has any foundation, it 
 entitles them not to the gratitude of the State, because it was 
 not the effect of choice, but of imbecility ; and that the effect 
 of the wise system of laws, the repealed Popery-code. 
 
 It may not be here improper to quote a passage out of the 
 speech of the late Earl of Chesterfield, at the opening of the 
 Irish Parliament in the year 1745, he being then Lord-Lieute- 
 nant of Ireland, to shew the opinion entertained by that' able 
 statesman, and the Government he then served, of the Popery- 
 laws :-— " The measures (said he) that have been hitherto taken 
 to prevent the growth of Popery, have, I hope, had some, 
 and will still have a greater effect ; however,! leave it to your 
 consideration, whether nothing further can be done, either by 
 new laws, or by the more effectual execution of those in being, 
 to secure this nation against the great number of Papists, 
 tvhose speculative errors tcould only deserve piiy^ if their per- 
 nicious influence on civil society did not both require and au- 
 thorize , restraint" 
 
 It is, indeed, to be lamented, that this restraint has been 
 taken off, at least in a great measure, through the imprudent 
 lenity of the ministiy here, who were really unacquainted 
 with the unruly spirit of the Irish Papists, and their insuper- 
 able aversion to the Protestants. 
 
 The mistaken indulgence they experienced, afforded there, 
 however, ample encouragement to plead with the united 
 Parliament for an equal participation with the Protestants, oi 
 all the favours which Government could bestow. 
 
 Hence the Petitioners inform the honourable House, "That 
 twenty-six years have now elapsed since their most gracious 
 Sovereign and honourable House of Parliament in Ireland, 
 
 by their public and deliberate act, declared, that from the 
 uniform [xaceable bciiaviour of the Roman Catholics of 
 Ireland, for a long series of years, it appears reasonable and 
 expedient to relax the disabilities and incapacities under 
 which they laboured.*' 
 
 But, if the preamble of an act of Parliament is to have 
 weight, what shall we say to the preambles of so many acts, 
 which give a totally different account of the Roman 
 Catholics ? Shall 1 refer to so many speeches of the Lord- 
 Lieutenants, in the i-eign of Geo. I. and Geo. If. which 
 uniformly treated the Papists as the common enerny ? What 
 shall ^ve say to the late Reports of the Committee of both 
 Houses of Parliament in Ireland? To the extraordinary 
 measures which have been taken for the security of the 
 country, since the very making of the above declaration? 
 Nay, must we forget that the very year after passing that 
 act of Parliament, a special statute was obliged to be passed, 
 for the punishment of certain disorders, (houghing of cattle, 
 &c.) notoriously committed by bodies of Roman Catholics ? * 
 And here I cannot but remind the reader of certain facts and 
 dates. The concessions in 1773 were immediately follow^ed 
 by the act called the Chalking Act, against certain offences, 
 and certain highly criminal and cruel practices, then very- 
 prevalent. Those of 1778 had a similar concomitant. The 
 concessions of 1782 are marked by the outages of the White- 
 Boys. And when, at last, in 1792, not only all disabilities 
 were removed, but the Romanists were admitted to the 
 elective franchise, and certain subordinate offices, we find 
 them immediately afterwards engaged in a most extensive 
 and atrocious conspiracy, which finally produced the un- 
 natural and bloody rebellion of 1798. — Such were the effects 
 which attended every conciliatoiy measure, as it was brought 
 forward ! 
 
 But, indeed, what does all this amount to ? For, to return 
 to what is the real state of the question, do the Petitioners 
 intend to say, do they actually assert, that the great body of 
 the Irish Roman Cutholics are loyal — that the teuets of their 
 
f 
 
 556 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 257 
 
 m n 
 
 If t 
 
 I 
 
 ^ff 
 
 1 
 
 h 
 
 religion do not tend to indispose their mind against a King, 
 who is of a different persuasion ? 
 
 In my apprehension, they have not made any such positive 
 assertion ; or if they had, I could have referred to the Au- 
 thentic Documents which have been published upon the 
 subject, both in former and in modem times, respecting as 
 well the massacre in 1641, as the atrocities in 1798. 1 could 
 say, that, upon comparing the events of those two periods, 
 the spirit which then displayed itself appears to be frightfully 
 the same. I could say further, that, although these two perio^ts 
 are singled out as being most prominent, yet the intermediate 
 space, as well as that which preceded the year 1641, present a 
 most shocking picture of disatfection and rebellion, of a bigotry 
 most sanguinary and always alive.* 
 
 Let me now ask the Petitioners— Did not the Catholic 
 Committee, about twenty years since, engage, as their agent, 
 Mr. Theobald Wolfe Tone, a man not even of their own 
 persuasion,* who was the founder of the Society of United 
 Irishmen, who was at the very time employed in an attempt 
 to form a traitorous conspiracy, for the purpose of effecting 
 a separation between Great Britain and Ireland, and who 
 kept up a correspondence with the French government, 
 with a view to procure its assistance to further his designs? 
 Their connection with such a man is surely a strong proof 
 of disloyalty; especially when it is considered, that, sub- 
 sequent to the bill of 1793, wherein so many favours were 
 conferred on them, the following resolution appeared in 
 the publication of the proceedings of the Committee— 
 
 iHi ! 
 
 ♦ The old writers are well known ; and as to the latter 
 period, it may be sufiicient to refer my readers to the several 
 reports of the Irish Houses of Parliament, to the several 
 speeches of Lord Clare, and to Sir Richard Musgrave's His- 
 tory of the late Rebellion, a work which has, as far as I can 
 judge, only proved itself authentic and correct, m proportion 
 as it has been attacked.— See also the very able " Strictures on 
 Mr. Plowden s attempt at History," the pamphlet entitled 
 *« Catholic Emancipation," enlarged edition, and the ?* Obser- 
 vations on the late and present state of Ireland." 
 
 " Resolved, That the sum of fifteen hundred pounds, to- 
 gether with a gold medal of the value of thirty guineas, bear- 
 ing a suitable inscription, be presented to Theobald Wolfe 
 Tone, Esq. agent to the Committee, as a testimony of his 
 services, and our gratitude." 
 
 A^ain, I ask. What good order, and uniform peaceable 
 behaviour was to be seen in the rebellion of 1798, when 
 priests commenced rebel generals, and when thousands 
 of his Majesty's loyal subjects were cruelly murdered? 
 The names of Father Murphy and Roach will not be 
 so soon forgotten by Protestants in Ireland — the sermon of 
 the parish priest of Bannow is not yet erased from the 
 memory. "Brethren,^' saicflie, *' you see you are victorious 
 every where, that the balls of the heretics fly about you 
 without hurting you, that few of you have fallen, whilst 
 thousands of the heretics are dead, and that the few of you 
 that have fallen, was from deviating from our cause, and 
 want of faith ; that this visibly is the work of God, who now 
 is determined that the heretics, who have reigned upwards 
 of an hundred years, should be extirpated, and the true 
 Catholic religion be established."* Father Roach, a rebel 
 general, to encourage his men against his Majesty's army, 
 pretended, and really made the poor deluded wretches believe, 
 that " he constantly caught the bullets as they came from 
 his Majesty's arms, and gave them to his men to load their 
 pieces with," Without, therefore, going several years back 
 to prove Catholic loyalty, let us only look at these recent 
 events. It will be admitted that, about thirty years ago, the 
 Roman Catholics were like a lion who had remained a long 
 time in chains, and who was thought by many to have 
 become so tame, that he plight have his liberty with safety 
 to all aiound him; but no sooner is his chain only lengthened, 
 than he gives a proof of what he would do, if he was properly 
 
 ♦ See the copy of the oath of Richard Grandy, sworn July 
 '23, 1798, before his Majesty's Justices of the peace, George 
 Pgle, Isaac Cormick, John H, Lyster, John Kennedy. 
 
 1 
 
 A i 
 
268 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 It, \ 
 
 5 i 
 
 mi 
 
 m ii; 
 
 |i 
 
 J ^ 
 
 k 
 
 I 
 
 /rce. Many similar proofs have been given in Ireland. 
 There was but one invasion of it during the last war, that 
 conducted by Humbert, at the head of one thousand Frencli 
 troops. He landed in a part of the country in which the 
 bulk of the inhabitants were Romanists, who joined him in 
 a mass on his landing. At his first encounter with the King's 
 -troops, the greater part of a regiment of Irish militia, all 
 Romanists, deserted to liim ; and those Romanists of intluence 
 or property within the districts adjacent to his quarters, 
 joined him also. What then can induce any one to praise the 
 loyalty of the Irish Romanists ? 
 
 T\\Q\x peaceable ness^ also, (to which I shall now revert,) has 
 been as highly commended, by some of their partisans in 
 Parliament, as their loyalty ; while the Irish Government, 
 had been loudly complained of, for having endeavoured to 
 prevent these quiet subjects from preparing their petitions. 
 It is, however, lather singular, that while they thus spoke 
 so favourable of Catholic patience under repeated injuries, 
 and of their ca/w, inoffensive demeanour, not only their re- 
 bellions already mentioned, but recent matters of fact, flatly 
 contradict such a statement. Their proceedings of late have 
 been carried on with audaciousness, tumult, outrage, and 
 even in open contempt of the laws. They therefore justly 
 deserve the reprehensions so unjustly cast upon the executive 
 government of Ireland, and the latter well deseiTe the com- 
 mendations so falsely bestowed on the Catholics. 
 
 They call themselves humble Petitioners, but, in fact, their 
 conduct more nearly resembles that of hectorino; bullies. 
 Hence, on the 18th of last June, 181*2, at an aggregate 
 Catholic meeting, held in Dublin, Lord Killeen moved a series 
 of fourteen Resolutions, recommending the renewal of an 
 earnest application, by petition, to the Legislature, for the 
 total and umjualifed repeal of the penal laws ; and lamenting 
 that the " promised boon of Catholic freedom had been 
 cruelly intercepted by the fatal witchery of an unworthy 
 secret influence** — also recommending Catholic freeholders 
 Bot to support any Candidates who do not pledge themselves to 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 259 
 
 support the Catholic cause, <^c. And Counsellor O'Gorman 
 (oiie of the leading members of the meeting) begged it 
 iijight be distinctly understood, that any arran-^ements or 
 conditions, which might be connected with Mr. Canning's 
 motion, in the House of Commons, would have no influence 
 oii tliu Catholics of Ireland, as they were determined to obtain 
 their freedom unconditionally. His speech was rc- 
 cti^ ed with loud applauses. 
 
 Thus they Address Parliament, not in the language of 
 supplication, nor even moderation, but of menace and defiance. 
 They ailect to petition, but they inclose swords within their 
 rolls of parchment. They appear before us, armed with all the 
 insolence and violence of indisputable right, spurning the idea 
 of ad conditional requisites, all previous consideration, and 
 provident delay. They send forth their demand in the 
 array of tear, and leave us no alternative but submission or 
 battle. They dictate to us as masters, and give us plainly 
 to understand, that if their rif^htful claims be obtained, they 
 will consider it not as the boon of our generosity, but as • 
 extoited from us by o\xx fears. Is this, then, the proof of 
 " their profound respect to the Legislature, and their dutiful 
 submission to the laws," as professed in their late Petition ? 
 
 Some of their advocates, also, while they pretend to debate 
 on the subject, in Parliament, take care to remind i;s of their 
 irresistible strength. Hence, General Matthew threatens us 
 " with a million of men in Ireland, of age to bear arms, and 
 able to crush their feeble oppressors to the dust." And we 
 can scarcely peruse a speech in their favour, which leaves us 
 any other choice, than free admission of the Catholics into 
 political power, or an avowed and justified rebellion. 
 
 At anotlier aggregate meeting in July, " a Petition was 
 read, whicli appears to be a transcript of the Petition, mutatis 
 mutandis, of the Dissenters of England to Parliament, for 
 universal ic ligious freedom." Thus (as the editor of the 
 Dublin Evening Post obsen^es) " they resolved to sink the 
 question of Catholic Emancipation, to petition upon the 
 principles of the Dissenters for the removal of all disabili- 
 
 
260 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAIN^T 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 o 
 
 "261 
 
 it V 
 
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 b lit 
 
 ■f 
 
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 1 
 
 •1 t 
 1 
 
 ties! !** And when Chevalier M'Carthy moved this resolution 
 as an amendment, that though '* the Catholics are determined 
 to persevere in demanding a total repeal of all the laws and 
 disabilities by which they are aflVcted, we are nevertheless 
 ready to listen to any conciliatory overture, which, by re- 
 moving the prejudices of many, and the alarms of some, 
 may lead to a fmal arrangement, satisfactoiy to both parties.'* 
 The same editor declares, that the Chevalier had hardly 
 uttered the word ** arrangement,'* Avhen the feelings of the 
 people were vented in marks of the strongest disapprobation 
 and disgust, and that not a single person could be found t 
 second so insidious and fatal an amendment.** Hence we see, 
 that while they boldly lay claim to every concession, without 
 exception, which Protestants can make, these ioyal and 
 peaceable Catholics will not deign to make the least conces- 
 sion, on their part, but even reprobate the very mention of 
 it. They refuse to accompany their unqualified demand 
 with the offer or admission of any sort of securities and 
 safeguards. They will not consent to remove any prejU' 
 dices — they will not put an end to any alarms, nor even 
 strive to quiet them — they will only be reconciled on their 
 own terms, and we must yield to menaces and insults. Surely, 
 then, eveiy member of ** the High Court of Parliament, 
 who has the least spirit or sense of duty, will " determine 
 (as his Royal Highness the Duke of Cumberland lately did) 
 " never to vote for the question, until these obnoxious reso- 
 lutions (couched, besides, in the most intemperate and inde- 
 corous language) shall be rescinded.** 
 
 Judge Blackstone, speaking of •♦ the Rights of persons,'* 
 mentions, among others, " the right of petitioning the King 
 or either House of Parliament, for the redress of grievances. 
 In Russia,** (says he,) " we are told by Montesquieu, that 
 the Czar Peter established a law, that no subject might 
 petition the throne, till he had first petitioned two different 
 ministers of state. In case he obtained justice from neither, he 
 might then present a third petition to the Prince ; but upon 
 pain of death, if found to be in the wrong. The consequence 
 
 tt 
 
 ♦» 
 
 of which was, that no one dared to offer such third petition ; 
 and grievances seldom falling under the notice of the Sove- 
 reign, he had little opportunity to redress them. The re- 
 strictions, for some there are, which are laid upon petition- 
 ing in England, are of a nature extremely different; and 
 while they promote the spirit of peace, they are no check 
 upon that of liberty. Care only must be taken, lest, under 
 the pretence of petitioning, the subject be guilty of any riot 
 or tumult; as happened in the opening of the memorable 
 Parliament in 1640 : and to prevent this, it is provided by 
 the statute 13 Car. II. st. 1. c. 5. that no Petition to the 
 King, or either House of Parliament, for any alterations in 
 Church or State, shall be signed by above twenty persons, 
 unless the matter thereof be approved by three justices of the 
 peace, or the major part of the grand jury, in the country, 
 and, in London, by the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Common 
 Council; nor shall any Petition be presented by more than 
 ten persons at a time.** 
 
 But, have these regulations been attended to by the Roman 
 Catholics? Or, have they been observed in the meetings of the 
 Jacobins and some Dissenters of the present day ? Far otherwise. 
 The late Bishop Newton, in a letter addressed to Parliament, 
 some years ago, made the following pertinent remarks, which, 
 being so truly applicable to the present disturbed state of the 
 nation, I trust, wiJl be taken into serious contemplation by the 
 members of both Houses. 
 
 " My Lords and Gentlemen, — You are called, at a very 
 important crisis, to a very important trust. We are become 
 a most degenerate and wicked people. The judgments of 
 God are hanging over the nation ; and it is your duty seriously 
 to consider how they may be prevented and averted. It is 
 not talking and haranguing, but setting to work in earnest, 
 that will ever produce any good. The Church and the State, 
 rehgion and morality, law and liberty, all look up to you, as 
 their guardians and protectors. 
 
 " I. The first subject that naturally offers itself to consider- 
 ation, is that of the late riots in London. Such a scene w^as 
 
il 
 
 
 I -..^ii 
 
 m 
 
 h 
 
 I 
 
 262 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 never before exhibited in this country, nor I believe in any 
 other ; and the nation has an entire confidence in your wisdom, 
 that you will take some effectual measures to prevent any 
 returii of the like dreadful calamities. The laws relating to 
 riots were little understood, till they were explained, upon 
 this occasion, with preat ability, by Lord Mansfield. But 
 they should be made so plain, that there can be no doubt 
 about them ; and they should also be strengthened and enlorced 
 by new laws and penalties, or things will easily grow worse 
 and worse, and we shall fall a prey to a licentious and unruly 
 mob. If the Parliament will not interpose, the mob will 
 assuredly govern. The evil spirit is got among them, and you 
 only can lay it; and you must lay it, or will yourselves be the 
 fn-st suiVerers. It has been observed, that, in most other 
 countries, injustice and oppression begin from above, and the 
 people are trampled on by their superiors ; but in England, 
 on the contrary, the abuse begins from the bottom, and rises 
 higher and hic;her ; there prevailing among among us. univer- 
 sally, such an impatience of all rule and authority, such a 
 disposition to molest and pull down those above us, as is not 
 to be found in any other nation. 1 wish there may not be too 
 much truth in this observation. Lawless liberty is the demon 
 that possesses our people. Religion and morality have scarce 
 any influence. Honesty and fidelity are rare among them. 
 They " despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities." They 
 are ripe for any mischief, and you should not only restrain 
 them by sood laws, but also set them a better example. Let 
 goodness descend from heaven above, and not wickedness rise 
 over all, as from hell beneath, 
 
 " II. Another evil that requires an immediate remedy, u 
 growing apace, by the means of assoclatkvis and commHtces 
 of correspondence, in different counties. These, under the 
 pretence of preserving, are really undermining, our happy 
 Constitution, by settin- up a new unauthorized fourth estate 
 to overawe and overrule the thrre old established estates ot 
 the realm. King, Lords, and Commons. Such as these were 
 the beginnings of the civil commotions in the last century, but 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 263 
 
 with this difference, that then the Parliament and people were 
 a;.ainst the Kin^r, whereas now the people are against both 
 King and Parliament. The cause being so much worse, we 
 cannot look for any better effects than they experienced at 
 that time, anarchy aud confusion, in the beginning, and, in 
 the end, a military government and tyrannical usurpation, till 
 the people, wearied with continual changes, and oppressed 
 beyond all patience, were happy at any rate to return to their 
 old Constitution. The old barons w^ere unwilling to have the 
 laws of England changed, Nolumus leges AngUce miitari: but 
 these men are for changing both the laws and the law-givers, 
 and erect their own tribunal over all. Assert, therefore, your 
 dignity ; maintain your authority ; enforce the execution of 
 old laws, and enact new laws for new occasions. Without 
 your exertions, there will be an utter end of all law, and of 
 all government. All such associations should be suppressed, 
 and strictly forbidden in future, and all such committee-men 
 should be punished as traitors to their king and country, and 
 enemies to the best constitution of government in the whole 
 world. 
 
 " III. It is the undoubted right of British subjects to peti- 
 tion the King, and either House of Parliament; but, surely, 
 this liberty has been carried too far in several instances, of late 
 years. Some regulations should be made, both as to the 
 matter of the Petitions, and as to the manner of presenting 
 them. For, how often have the Corporation of London, for 
 instance, presented petitions about matters, whereof they were 
 by no means competent judges, and wherein they had little 
 or no concern? Nay, after acts have passed both Houses, 
 have they not still petitioned against them, as if it was wise or 
 prudent in his Majesty to pay greater attention to the Common 
 Council of London, than to the Great Council of the nation 
 assembled in Parliament ? Petitions should also be presented 
 as Petitions, and riot be carried up by such numbers, as if they 
 meant to obtain them by Corce and violence. The freedom of 
 titbate is not to be impeded, or encroached upon, by sturdi/ 
 ^^ggars. The number of Petitioners is by law limited to 
 
n 51 
 
 ■ , I 
 
 I.K 
 
 •i 
 
 .1 
 
 I'* i ' 
 
 k 
 
 : i 
 
 t ' 
 
 ■-i A 
 
 'II 
 
 ng4 STRONG -REASONS AGAINSt 
 
 , ,n^ if thev exceed that number, as they have of late 
 twenty, and if they exceea u Petitions should, for 
 
 by hundreds and by thousand all such Pet.Uo ^^^^ 
 
 thnt verv reason, if for nothing eisc, uc i j 
 rre Suld they' be rejected, when the persons . l.o pr. 
 sent and support them, threaten recourse to a'^s. and wno- 
 Ter they are'who hold such language, they s ouUl^^ be con- 
 fined and persecuted, as the stirrers up ot rebellion. 
 
 It .^ now advert to the Catholic Committees, and ta- 
 tho ic Conv ntion in Ireland, it will be found that they 
 le^ralto "ether unjustifiable, and that the accusations against 
 r;Gove;nment. fi- suppressing them, have beenJ>oth Ja ^ 
 
 , • • e T7nr 1 lon^ time interference had been ah- 
 and miunous. roi a lou^ ^""^ . 
 
 stained^ from, tl.ugh l^^^J:^^^ C^^^ 
 S:Vo:rdirerh::enUrierrupted. but they pro 
 reeL to form a representation of five hundred persons to 
 drltup a Petition, to give it weight, and a more respectable 
 appla aL. Should, then, such a numei^us assemb > of pe^P' 
 be suffered > By no means: for if this representative body 
 had bin allowed to meet together, unmolested, they would 
 probably have attempted to form themselves into a pennaneut 
 Catholic Parliament, as the Romanists had often done belore^ 
 In the House of Lords, lately, when a mot.on was made 
 for forming a Committee, to examine into the per urbed 
 state of Ireland, the Earl of Liverpool said : As to the 
 conduct of the Government in Ireland, it was the umvers 1 
 opinion of that House, that a Convention, such as was s. - 
 ting in Ireland, ought not to be allowed nor countenanced, 
 r meeting, which was to consist of Cat^iolic noblemen 
 Catholic prelates, and other descriptions ol persons to th 
 amount of more than five hundred men. was such as he shouU 
 have thought would have alarmed all thinking men. Wha 
 could be the purpose for which such an assembly could be 
 convened ? Had not the Catholics for many years past been 
 aUowed to present Petitions ? How had those Petitjons bee. 
 treated? Refused, it was true; but as long as he House 
 ^vas not intimidated, their Petitions were received with all 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 205 
 
 respect ; for though there was a power in the House, there 
 had never been an instance in which it had been moved that 
 a Catholic Petition should be rejected. Under all the circum- 
 stances of the case, it would have been a base dereliction of 
 the Irish Government not to have acted as they did ; and the 
 statute-book and the law itself would have been a mockeiy, 
 had they done less. He could not, therefore, see from these 
 circumstances any ground for going into a Committee. In- 
 deed, if he were, in that House, the most zealous advocate 
 for the Catholic cause, he ^vould not allow a Convention. 
 If their claims were to be granted, it should be as a boon, 
 and not to be extorted by such means as those now pur- 
 
 iued." 
 
 The Marquis of Wellesley, also, when delivering his senti- 
 ments on this subject, *' defied the noble Earl who sup- 
 ported the motion, to prove that the Irish Government had 
 interposed between the Parliament and the right to petition 
 to it of the meanest subject of that country ; or that those 
 subjects had been oppressed either by the Sovereign or the ^ 
 Parliament. In the whole transactions of the Government, 
 which the noble Marquis felt himself personally interested 
 to vindicate, was no step taken to check such a right ; and 
 this he aftirmed in the name of that Government for whose 
 honour he felt deeply concerned. He not only believed, that 
 it was contrary to the feeling of the head of that Govern- 
 ment, but he was convinced that the principal adviser of that 
 Government would utterly repudiate and abhor any attempt 
 to stand between the Parliament and the people, in the 
 exercise of this high right. The measures which they had 
 adopted were necessary to the safety of the kingdom, were 
 advised by its law ofticers, and were sanctioned by the 
 Court of King's Bench. Whether the advice was right or 
 wrong, whether the law was bad or good, it was not neces- 
 sary to discuss at present, although he was perfectly prepared 
 at a future opportunity to defend it. Whatever was the pre- 
 tence of the meeting, whether to petition, or otherwise, the 
 Government were advised that such a Convention was qou- 
 
■ i 
 . 1 
 
 266 
 
 STUONO HEASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 •267 
 
 4*1 
 
 iif 
 
 II 
 
 
 .f 
 
 traiy to law. He remembered that the opmion of Mr. Fox 
 was in favour of this veiy act, in 179-2, tor he stated that the 
 principle a-ainst wliich it was directed, was one calculated 
 to create disturbance. But whatever might have »>een t\i<^ 
 impressions at that time, now, after the sitting of the Com- 
 mittee, and the knowledge of its proceedings, there could be 
 no longer any doubt upon the subject. Yet what did the 
 Irish Government do? They barely issued a proclamation, 
 stating the law as it stood, and their determination to entorce 
 it. And what followed ? A direct and palpaWc violation 
 of it. If any doubt was entertained as to that circumstance, 
 let them appeal to the trial itself. At that trial there were 
 some admirable specimens of t!ie eloquence of the bar, and 
 of the learning and acuteness of the judges, which every one 
 must approve of; but the result was a distinct opinion that 
 the letter of the law was in favour of Government. 
 
 " Upon what ground then did the Committee stand ? If 
 some violent act were committed by the Government, if some 
 profligate interposition had taken place, in opposition to the 
 rights of the people, in contradiction to the principles of the 
 law, and the spirit of the Constitution, their ground was 
 manifestly good. But had Government so interposed? Had 
 it not maintained, instead of violating, rights ? Had it not 
 supported, instead of dcfeathg law? Had it not maintained, 
 instead of undtrmining the Constitution ? There was no 
 ground for the motion : he must object to it : he must vote 
 against it. The line which Government had taken was one 
 of admonition. It had told them they were acting contrary 
 to laic ; and in doing so it had given them the best advice, for 
 he knew nothing so unfavourable to tlieir cause as the viola- 
 tion of a positive law. Nor was he aware of any thing which 
 could give their application to Parliament a more unfortunate 
 or more unpersuasive complexion, than the circumstance of 
 having ti-ampled on a proclamation of the executive power, 
 for the purpose of planning a step injurious to the public trai> 
 
 quillity." , 
 
 On 'the same occasion, the Earl of Rosse, likewise, agreed 
 
 with the Earl of Fitzwilliam's statement, " that the cause of 
 the present discontent in Ireland was, the being prevented 
 from petitioning in the manner desired. If," (said he,) '* the 
 Government had attempted to stifle petitioning, then their 
 Lordships might have been properly called upon to interfere; 
 for the Catholics had the same right as all the rest of his 
 Majesty's subjects to petition : but the Irish Government had 
 not attempted to impede the Catholics in any measure w^here 
 they would not also have impeded the Protestants, The 
 claims of the Catholics could be but equal, not superior, 
 privileges to the Protestants, who, if they had endeavoured 
 to petition by Convention, must have been proceeded against 
 in a precisely similar manner. He would for a moment put 
 the Convention Act out of the question, and ask, whether 
 the people of England would have a right to petition by Con- 
 vention, as attempted in Ireland ? The House of Commons 
 were the only constitutional representatives oi* the people : 
 but for a moment he would suppose the case to be otherwise ; 
 that the people should elect another representative body,— , 
 that delegates from different counties should meet in the 
 metropolis, and for the most legitimate object — the redress 
 of grievances. When so met, what could hinder them from 
 agitating every subject connected remotely or directly with 
 their main object ? Might they not discuss the whole system 
 of peace and war, the raising of taxes, the ability to pay 
 them, the resources for recruiting armies, the state of our 
 foreign relations — in short, the whole internal and external 
 policy of the kingdom? AH the topics, in fact, which oc- 
 cupy the attention of Parliament in a whole session, might be 
 delibemted in such a conventional assembly. What, how- 
 ever, would he the consequence, of two such rcprtsentative 
 bodies? Surely this, ^liat it would frequently occur, that one 
 representative Convention would issue opinions directly oppo- 
 site to those of the other, . He would ask, also, if sucii a Con- 
 vention had a right to sit for a day or a week, why not for a 
 month or a year — or as long as Parliament should sit, or as 
 long as it pleased ? If, however, no noble Eord could shut 
 
 s 2 
 
 ;, 1 
 
\U 
 
 ^6S 
 
 STRONS REASOKS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 269 
 
 i 
 
 I." i 
 
 
 
 his mind to the dangers of such a Convention— if all must 
 agree, that such a representative assembly should be crushed 
 in its very commencement, then the Irish Government should 
 not be reprehended for doing what the Ens^Usk Government, 
 in a case exactly analogous, would be reprehended for not 
 doing. If he were asked what precedent, what law, he could 
 adduce in support of his opinions, he w^ould answer, the im- 
 memorial usage of our ancestors ; the non-existence, during 
 any period of our history, of such a scheme of representation, 
 (for the Convention of the Revolution was not a correspond- 
 ing case); and, lastly, its incompatibility with the nature of 
 our Constitution. 
 
 The law, then, had dictated to the Irish Government the 
 course which it was their duty to pursue. An act of Parlia- 
 ment had dictated the same course— and they had pursued it. 
 He wished noble Lords to recollect, that when the provisions 
 of that statute w^ere first debated in that House, no noble 
 Lord had objected to the construction of that act, but to the 
 method of promulgating it. The noble Lords on the opposite 
 side had recommended the. method by proclamation ; the 
 Irish Government had adopted that method on the present 
 occasion; and if the Irish Catholics had entertained any res- 
 pect for the two IIouBes of Parliament, or for the ordinances 
 of their own Government, they would have desisted from a 
 farther prosecution of their plan. On the conti-aiy, what steps 
 had they taken ? The Irish Government, in exact compli- 
 ance with the proposition of Ttoble Lords on the other side of 
 the House, had, on one day, issued a proclamation ; they had 
 at the same time addressed a communication to the head of 
 the Catholic body; but the very next day a counter-proclama- 
 tion appeared from the Catholics. Thus they set themselves 
 in direct opposition, in evident and open hostility, to the 
 Government: and was this a time to submit to their preten- 
 sions and adopt conciliatory measures ? 
 
 " The Government were accused of exciting discontent 
 am*ng the Catholics ; but how had they done so ? By en- 
 forcing the laws ? Surely, \iot to those who enforced, but 
 
 to those who broke the laws, should be imputed the blame of 
 exciting discontent. The conduct of the Duke of Richmond, 
 so far from being reproachable, appeared to him to deserve 
 great praise for its conciliatory spirit and forbearance, as long 
 as such forbearance was legally possible. For to what excess 
 might not the principle and plan of the Convention have been 
 carried ? How had America proceeded, when it wished to 
 separate itself from this kingdom ? Was it not by means of a 
 Representative Assembly? The Government, it appeared, 
 had exerted itself with vigour to cTush a dangerous Conven- 
 tion. Would the noble Lords desert them in this laudable at- 
 tempt ? Would they not rather second them, and confirm their 
 acts? All that was loyal in Ireland would look to the Parlia- 
 ment for that firm assistance which it was wont to receive 
 from it. Should this be granted, then all the dangers with 
 which we were menaced would soon pass away." 
 
 The noble Lord then stated, in conclusion, that " had the 
 conduct of the Irish Government been tceak and pusillanimous, 
 there would have been cause of fear ; but since, on the con- 
 trary, it had been bold and determinate,--^s[uce it had, with 
 persevering firmness, upheld the laws against all persons 
 who had infringed them, however high their rank,— in this 
 state of things the number of the discontented may be great, 
 the ranks of the disloyal may be numerous,, but Ireland is 
 safer 
 
 The illegality of the Catholic Convention, and the insolent 
 contempt which that self-constituted body shewed for the 
 law of the land, and for those who administered it, may be 
 still more strongly demonstrated, by the following authentic 
 document. 
 
 " Court of King's Bench, Dublin, Feb, G.^The King, v. 
 Kirwan,— The traverser in this case, found guilty on the 30th 
 ult. of a misdemeanour by a breach of the Convention Act, 
 was this day brought up for judgment, which the Court was 
 pleased to pronounce as follows: — 
 
 ** iVIr. Thomas Kirwan ; You have been tried upon an 
 indictment found against you, upon the statute 33d of the 
 
( ■ 
 
 i ) 
 
 j 
 
 270 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 271 
 
 
 h f 
 
 f* T 
 
 King, commonly called the' Convention Act. You voted and- 
 acted in the election of delegates, to represent the Roman 
 Catholic inhabitants of a certain district in the City ol Dublin 
 in the general Catholic Convention, and after a patient and 
 solemn trial of four days, you have been, upon clear, conclu- 
 sive, and uncontradicted evidence, found t^uilty. 
 
 « Indeed your own Counsel, eminently qui.lilied to make 
 the most of any case, seemed from the begmning to have 
 abandoned and admitted the fact, for instead of controvcrtmg 
 that fact, which was not committed in a corner, theyconlmed 
 your defence, first, to a challenge of the array, which, after 
 ten days discussion, proved false in its foundation, and malig- 
 nant in its motive; 2dly, to an endless ami tiresome coureeof 
 unavailing and irrelevant cross-examination; and lastly, to 
 certain nonsuit points, evading the truth and merits of the 
 case, certain alleged variaucts between the indictment and the 
 evidence, which being submitted to the Judges, were unani- 
 mously and without hesitation held by them to be immate- 
 rial, and were over-ruled. 
 
 " The act of which you stand convicted has been declared 
 and enacted by the Legislature a high misdemeanour— not for 
 being in its own nature contrary to any principle of honesty, 
 morality, or justice, but for wise and political reasons, namely, 
 because, in the words of the statute, • the election of repre- 
 sentative bodies may be used to serve the ends oi' factions and 
 seditious persons, to the violation of the public peace.' The 
 statute, therefore, first declares and enacts, that all represen- 
 tative bodies— all delegations for public matters, are unlawful 
 assemblies, and provides that even the pretence of petitioning, 
 whether true or false— that the most constitutional or spe- 
 ciaus of all purposes, shall not serve to cloak the proceed- 
 
 ing. 
 
 " By a superabundant care, it saves the sacred rip^ht of 
 Petition, leaving it in the same precise plight and condition 
 as when asserted, at the glorious Revolution, by the Bill of 
 Rights. Thus that inestimable and unalterable privilege of 
 a free people has been expressly saved alike to all the sects of 
 
 Ireland, whether Protestant, Presbyterian, or Roman Catho- 
 lic, iathe same i rity and perfection in which it is enjoyed 
 by our fellow-suhjects in England ; and for myself, I own I 
 do not desire to move in a wider or more enlarged sphere of 
 civil and political liberty, than that high-minded and intel- 
 ligent people are contented to enjoy. In England, where a 
 clear conception and a noble j^ealousy of their rights and pri- 
 vileges, are known to pervade the whole mass of the people; 
 in their widest excesses of freedom, assemblies of this des- 
 cription were never thought of. I'hese Conventions and Con- 
 frresses, and other Assemblies, formerly elected to represent 
 great bodies, are exclusively of Irish growth, and have always 
 been plainly calculated to overawe the Parliament, to control 
 its deliberative faculty, and to brave and browbeat the Govern- 
 ment. Such were the Dungannon Conventionists of 1793 ; 
 such were the Volunteer Conventionists of 178*2; such was 
 the Catholic Convention assembled at Kill^enny in lb'42, 
 composed precisely of the same materials as the present Ca- 
 tholic Convention — of peers and prelates, and of county and * 
 city representatives, who commenced their labours with 
 solemn professions of humility and moderation, and ended in 
 forming themselves into a Parliament, and assuming the fimc- 
 tions of a Legislature. 
 
 ** Such assemblies as these are the representatives of discon- 
 tent, become, by an easy and natural transition, t he ministers 
 of sedition. Turbulent and loud-tongued politicians, whose 
 trade is declamation, and whose motive is not i^ehgion but 
 ambition, soon command and domineer 'at such assemblies ; 
 the light and worthless like chatf rise to the surface, and soon 
 acquire an ascendency, "while those of intrinsic weight and 
 sterling value sink to the bottom and disappear. 
 
 " Under these circumstances, the Government, in dis- 
 charge of its prime and most imperious trust, have stepped 
 out seasonably, and with a laudable energy, to avert the im- 
 pending danger, but with an energy, not more laudable and 
 efficient, than the moderation and conciliatory spirit which 
 they have displayed; the Attorney-General, having obtained 
 
272 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 •273 
 
 1^' ' 
 
 ' \n t 
 
 1 
 
 J' 
 
 upon two several occasions the deliberate consti-uctions of the 
 Court upon the statute in question, feels himself at liberty to 
 indulge the well-known mildness of his nature and the mag- 
 nanimous moderation of his Government, and has entered a wo/t 
 prosequi upon the several other depending cases. 
 
 " Before I close, allow me to recommend, sir, to you, and 
 through you, to the Catholic body, the sage counsel of their 
 best adviser, and their cordial friend, the Solicitor-General. 
 I agree, implicitly with him, that the Catholic cause has not 
 so mischievous an enemy as the Catholic Convention, That 
 unlawful assembly has diverted the public mind from the true 
 question; and before the great question of Catholic Emanci- 
 pation can be discussed, the laws and Constitution, which this 
 assembly has invaded, must be vindicated. It is not through 
 the wounded sides of the Constitution, or over the trampied 
 laws of the land, that they can hope to win a passage to 
 the Temple of Liberty. 
 
 " The Court entertains the most sanguine hope, that the 
 act of Parliament, which had never been awakened into 
 action, will be allowed to resume its long slumber in the sta- 
 tute-book, and in that hope, have resolved to inflict upon 
 you only a nominal punishment Feeling it, however, to be 
 their duty to express their most marked reprobation of cer- 
 tain slanderous practices, in the course of your defence ; but 
 particularly of your alfidavit; which, though circulated in 
 congenial papers with all the triumph of truth, was found to 
 be so false and scurrilous, as to be ordered oft* the file, and 
 not allowed to pollute the Records of the Court. 
 
 " The sentence of the Court is, that you, Thomas Kir- 
 wan, be fined one mark, and discharged. 
 
 " Mr. Kirwan bowed to the Court and retired ;" conscious, 
 no doubt, that the observations were just, and that Govern- 
 ment treated him with far greater lenity than he had reason 
 to expect. 
 
 Having fully shewn the futility of the Catholic pretensions 
 to peaceableness and loyalty, I now go on to consider another 
 
 plea of merit, alleged in their favour, namely, that " they 
 supported in Ireland the great measure of an Union of the 
 two kingdoms, and by their exertions effected it" But this 
 is as void of foundation in fact, as the former. Every one, 
 who has the smallest acquaintance with the history of Ireland, 
 must acknowledge, that the whole body of Irish Romanists, 
 from the commencement of the reign of Queen Elizabeth to 
 the present time, has directed all its exertions to the separa^ 
 tion of Ireland from England. Such separation was, and is, 
 the point to which they have uniformly directed all their 
 conspiracies, all their massacres, all their rebellions, all their 
 political views and measures. The Irish Protestants, on the 
 contrary, were always (irmly attached to Great Britain, and 
 always looked to her for protection, countenance, and sup- 
 port; being ready at all times to expend the last shilling of 
 their property, and spill the last diop of their blood, in de- 
 fence of the just rights of the British empire. The whole 
 body of Protestants, till a few years back, and a very 
 great majority of them since, were ambitious of uniting ther 
 nation indissolubly to Great Britain, by an incorpoi-ating 
 Union ; and, by their representatives in Parliament, actually 
 petitioned the Crown to procure such an Union, in the reign 
 of Queen Anne ; which Petition was then, with unaccount- 
 able haughtiness, rejected. But the Irish Romanists, so late 
 as the year 1795, proclaimed their hostility to that measure. 
 In the spring of that year, the representatives of the whole 
 mass of the Roman Catholics of Ireland, chosen from every 
 considerable district, city, and town in that kingdom, by 
 open, popular election, assembled at St Francis's Romish 
 chapel, in the city of Dublin. In this assembly, the most 
 treasonabl* speeches, stuffed with the most virulent invec- 
 tives against the British nation, and the most lavish praises of 
 the Frtdch revolution, stigmatizing the war against the French 
 regicides with the epithet of an impious crusade, and exhort- 
 ing the nation to a separation from Great Britain, were ut- 
 tered by several of the leading and popular Romanists. The 
 assembly entered unanimously into several factious and 
 
:M 
 
 274 
 
 STllONG nCASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 275 
 
 i ^ 1 
 
 ■ .1 1 1 
 
 treasonable resolutions. It was surmised at this assembly, that 
 an Union between Great Britain and Ireland was then in the 
 contemplation of Government, though no such measure had 
 been announced; and one of the unanimous resolutions was 
 the following : " Resolved, that we pledge oui selves, collec- 
 tively and individually, to resist even our own Emancipation, 
 if proposed to be conceded on the ignominious terms of an 
 acquiescence in the fatal measure of an Union with Great 
 Britain." By the unanimous vote of this assembly, also, 
 consisting of above lifteen hundred men, representatives of 
 all the Romanists of Ireland, these resolutions, together with 
 abstracts of the speeches of the principal demagogues among 
 them, were published in most of the factious papers, both 
 in Great Britain and Ireland. Here then is proof positive 
 of the hostile sentiments of the whole mass of Irish Ro- 
 manists, not of any partial body of them, to the measure of 
 an incorporating Union of the two nations, so late as the 
 
 year 1795. 
 
 Their declarations against the measure did not stop there : 
 in the year 1799, as soon as an Union was proposed by Govern- 
 ment, a meeting of the Romanists of the city of Dublin was 
 convened by their leaders at the Ro>al Exchange. At this 
 meeting, a very general one, they entered into violent reso- 
 lutions against an Union, which they published, as usual, in the 
 factious papers both in England and Ireland. The same line 
 of conduct was pursued in several other parts of Ireland. 
 Though this hosiility of the Irish Romanists to an Union was 
 perfectly impotent, (the poUtical imbecility of the whole sect, 
 particularly after the suppression of their then recent rebel- 
 lion, reiulering them incapable either of promoting or ob- 
 stiucting the measure) ; yet the English Government in Ireland 
 condescended to negociate with the party, and endeavoured 
 to procure signatures of the dregs of the people of that per- 
 suasion to papers and addresses in favour of the measure. 
 Several addresses of this kind appeared in the Government 
 prints; the names of wretches who could not write their 
 names, appeared as if they were subscribers to such addresses. 
 
 The very gaols were canvassed to procure subscribers, and 
 multitudes of names appeared, as the names of real subscribers 
 to these addresses, thoiigh persons of such names did not exist 
 in the places from which the addresses were stated to have 
 been sent In short, with all the activity and intrigue of 
 Government, no considerable body of Ropaanists throughout 
 the kingdom could be procured, publicly to avow their appro- 
 bation of the measure. 
 
 It is admitted, that many honest men, and good subjects^ at 
 this side of the water, (utterly ignorant of the state of Ireland, 
 and of Irish affairs,) have been duped, by the most shameful 
 falsehoods and misrepresentations, into an approbation of the 
 measure now in debate ; and that there is a difference of opi- 
 nion among men of that description respecting it ; but among: 
 demagogues, repHbHcans, and injideh^ tliere is no difference 
 of opinion on it. They are unanimous in its support; and 
 their unanimity on' the point should induce all loyal subjects, 
 who have been deluded into an opinion of its utility to the 
 State, to re-examine the grounds of their opinion, and the- 
 authenticity of the information on which they formed it. 
 
 It is fit to be remarked, that the first decisive step of the 
 French revolutionists in their career of anarchy, was the sub- 
 version of their Church Establishment, which led immediately 
 to the subversion of their civil government. The consequence 
 of the propQsed measure, if adopted, will be the same in the 
 British empire ; it therefore meets the approbation of all the 
 
 Jacobins in it. 
 
 "To demonstrate, (said Dr. Duigenan, in the House of 
 Commons,) that Irish Romanists neither gave, nor could give, 
 any assistance to the measure of an incorporating Union, it is 
 only necessary to state a known matter of fact, which is, that 
 a great majority of the Irish Parliament would never have 
 agreed to an incorporating Union with Great Britain, if any 
 hint had been given, or had it even been suspected, that the 
 present measure would be attempted; after an Union had 
 taken place. I call on the persons concerned on the part of 
 Government in conducting the business of the Uition in the 
 
276 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 277 
 
 
 *4 
 
 '■A 
 
 I 
 
 Irish House of Commons, to deny this fact, if they can. For 
 my own part, I can truly aver, that, instead of warmly sup- 
 porting the measure of an Union in the Irish Commons, I 
 would have opposed it to the utmost of my power, had I sus- 
 pected that such a measure as the present would have been 
 introduced into Parliament, in the event of an Union tak- 
 ing place ; and I know many members of the Irish Commons, 
 supporters of the Union, who would have decidedly opposed 
 it, had they any suspicion of the present measure being one of 
 its consequences. In short, the greater part of the Irish Com- 
 mons would have done so. 
 
 *• One principal argument made use of by all the agents of 
 Government to the Irish members, to induce them to agree to 
 an Union, was, that all hostility of the British Cabinet to Irish 
 Protestants, and all further encouragement and support of 
 Irish Romanists, would for ever cease, on the establishment of 
 an Union between the two countries, because all inducement 
 to such a species of policy would then for ever cease. Could 
 any British subject ever suspect, that, in the reign of a prince 
 of the House of Brunswick, a measure would be proposed in 
 a British Parliament, the attempting of which cost the un- 
 happy James II. his crown, expatriated him and his posterity, 
 and caused a breach in the hereditary succession of our Kings, 
 always a serious evil in an hereditary monarchy ? Astonishing, 
 that what our Kings could not even attempt with impunity, 
 should be, after a lapse of one centur}^ daringly attempted ; 
 and that too under the reign of a Prince, whose sole title to 
 the crown rests on a principle directly adverse and oppo- 
 site to the principle of this measure ! His title is a Protestant 
 title, and, thanks to Heaven! our Monarch is a Protestant, vl 
 sincere one, and bound by his oath, and as strongly by his prin- 
 ciples, to maintain the Protestant religion as by law established. 
 This measure diretly tends to the sapping of his title ; for if it 
 is just and advantageous to the State, now to invest Romanists 
 with equal political privileges with Protestants, it was equally 
 so in the reign of King James II. 
 " Such a measure, now that an Union between Great Britain 
 
 and Ireland has taken place, is more mischievous to the Bri- 
 tish empire, than it could have been in the reign of James ; 
 because, in his reign, few^ Romanists could obtain seats in the 
 British Parliament, as their sect was not then, nor is it now, 
 very numerous in Great Britain. But Irish Romanists, if this 
 measure succeeds, will obtain seats in Parliament, and in the 
 course of a few years, it is probable that above eighty Roman- 
 ists, out of the hundred Irish Commoners, will become mem- 
 bers—a strong band, indissolubly knit together, who will cer- 
 tainly be allied to every junto of Republicans, every band of 
 Dissenters, in every opposition to Government, unless they shall 
 be gratified to the utmost extent of their wishes, by the utter 
 subversion of the Constitution in Church and State. Can aay 
 doctrine make more for the purposes and designs of the in- 
 fidel and republican factions in our empire? Can any measure 
 more directly tend to the introduction of ^archy, democracy, 
 and infidelity, nay, to an entire change of Government ? 
 
 It may be justly remarked, that this measure for the eleva- 
 tion and aggrandizement of Popeiy, following so immediately 
 on the heels of the Romish rebellion in Ireland, and the hor- 
 rible massacre of the Irish Protestants in the course of it, 
 coupled with the almost general pardon of the principal trai- 
 tors and murderers, actors in it, if it should be adopted, 
 must, by every reasonable man, be considered as a public 
 reward conferred on Irish Romanists for their rebellion and 
 evuel assassination of their Protestant fellow-subjects in-cold 
 blood ; and that too a reward of the utmost magnitude and 
 value. It has been already proved, that it cannot be esteemed 
 a reward of their merits, for merits they have rione" 
 
278 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOI.IC CLAIMS. 
 
 279 
 
 SECTION XI. 
 
 The -Popish religion always the same; tnilitates strongly agai,ist 
 every Church and State not in communion with it. 
 
 One of the arguments in support of the Roman Catholic 
 claims h. that the present generation of them are much more 
 enlightened than their ancestors, and that they are not now ot 
 such an intolerant and persecuting spirit as those in fonner 
 a^es But this is mere assertion, without proof: and the 
 <^ntrarv has been evinced in some of the preceding pages. 
 There it has been fully shewn, that the doctrmes, political, 
 moral, and religious, contained in the Petition, and slated to be 
 the principles inculcated by the Roman Catholics, are diame- 
 trically opposite, to the principles taught and inculcated by the 
 canons and decrees of general councils, by all writers, lay and 
 cleric, of the greatest authority among the Romanists, and 
 adopted by the univereal practice of their Church, from the 
 date of the Council of Latenin, to the present day. For, their 
 modern writers, such as Dr. Tory, and Mr. Plowden, maintam, 
 that " the religious principles of the Roman Catholics being ««- 
 changeable, they are applicable to all times; and that if any one 
 says, or pretends to insinuate, that moilern Roman Catholics dif- 
 fer, in one iota, from their ancestois, he either deceives himself, 
 or wishes to deceive others; and that semper eadem" (ahcays 
 the same) " is emphatically descriptive of their religion." 
 
 Dr. Jortin observes (v. 7. p. 373) : " The author of the life ot 
 Cardinal Pole hath lately undertaken to recommend to us the 
 very scum and dre^s of Popery, and to vilify and calumniate 
 the Reformation and the Reformers, in a bigoted, disingenuous, 
 and superficial performance. Yet even this poor attempt hath 
 its use. For it servcs to inform us of the true and the unalter- 
 able spirit of Popery, and to shew us what usage we have to 
 expect, if these ecclesiastics could once more rule over us. It 
 is fit that we should be sometimes put in mind of this ; for we 
 
 have been sti-angely apt to forget it. and to contradict a proverb 
 of our own. which says, that ' a burnt child dreads the fire.' " 
 
 Let me now appeal to matters of fact. Are not all the 
 late insurrections and rebellions in Ireland, a standing evi- 
 dence of the hostility which the Papists still bear to tlie 
 Protestants? And, if they are not all relaxed in their hatred 
 towards those whom they are pleased to style heretics, why 
 are the horrid cruelties of the Inquisition still continued in all 
 countries where the Popish religion bears the sway ? Nay, 
 does not this execrable « tribunal exist in Goa, unawed by 
 the vicinity of British humanity and dominion?" Whoever 
 reads Dr. Buchanan's " Christian Researches in Asia," lately 
 published, will feel his blood run chill at the details eiven 
 of the Inquisition there: p. SaO—^GT. 
 
 Does not one of their present bishops (Dr. Butler) tell us 
 plainly that " there is no other true Church, besides the Holy 
 Catholic Church," and that " all are obliged to be of this 
 true Church," because "no one can be saved out of it?" 
 (Cat. p. 16). And are not the Papists now publicly vending 
 and dispersing different tracts and books, not only recom- 
 mending their own preposterous tenets and superstitious 
 rites, but scurrilously abusing the Protestant religion ? For- 
 merly, they were cautious even in bringing books into the 
 realm, though printed abroad; or if they ventured to print, 
 yet never to name the place where they were printed, or 
 advertise them for sale ; but circulated them in a private 
 manner : whereas, now, since the passing of the late acts in 
 their favour, they advertise their books and pamphlets in 
 the public papers ; and the editor of the abstract of the 
 Dotiay Catechism, published in 1779, has not only put his name 
 and place of abode on the title page ; but has told us, in 
 capitals, that it is WITH PERMISSION. 
 
 But I have a much more important observation to make, 
 whicli must strike every impartial reader with the fullest 
 conviction, that Popcnj is ahcays the same; and that its 
 adherents are, at this day, as inveterate enemies to the Pro- 
 iet tant cause, as any of their predecessors. 
 
 M 
 
 i : 
 
280 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLATMS. 
 
 281 
 
 In the year 1771, a book appeared, (without the printers 
 name.) entitled " The general Histoiy of the Christian Church, 
 from her birth to her final triumphant state in Heaven, 
 chiefly deduced from the Apocalypse of St. John the Apostle 
 By Sig. Pastormi." And. in 1782, it was reprmted at 
 
 Wigan, by R. Furguson. 
 
 When it first came into my hands. I concluded, that he 
 author was either an Italian nobleman, or a b.shop of the 
 Romish Church, under a fictitious name, supposing that 
 Pastorini signified a chief p<u*or. or shepherd. But. m some 
 ^me "fter I was credibly informed, that Dr. Walmesley. 
 r ^ bishop of Bath and wells, was the real ant o 
 Ofth.s. however. I had no positive proof, -^'l/^.fy/^^ 
 a "fourth edition" of the work, with a portrait of that 
 BishoD prefixed to it. under which are the follow.ng t.tles- 
 «'?he%'::erable and Right Reverend Charles Wal^.^ey 
 Lord Bishop of Rama. Vicar Apostohc of the Western 
 district O S. B. D. D. of Sorbon, F. R. S. of London and 
 Ber-Ob. November 26th, 1797. iEtat. 75. the 40th of 
 h.s Episcopacy." But. what is still more extraordma^S 
 it appears to have been publ.shed by the Professors of th 
 Roman C.thoUc College at Maynooth ; fm- '^ was Pnnt'.d - 
 Dublin (as the title-page informs us) " by H^ F.tzpa ncW 
 4. Capel-street. Printer and Bookseller to the R. C. College. 
 
 ^?hT'the'^Protestant Government, under which the Ca- 
 tholics live, has been requUed w.th audac.ous ^^->^^;^^' 
 the basest ingratitude, will be evident to all ^^ho attentively 
 peruse the extracts I shall furnish them w.th and who cm.- 
 Ler the uncomn.on liberality and gcne.os.ty with which 
 the Catholics have been treated, their most magn.ficen 
 seminary of learning at Maynooth being raised for them al 
 the expcnce of the nation, and still supported by it 
 
 But before I enter upon that pari of the work which 
 .elates to the Protestants. I wish to -^^e -me remarksjn 
 the Introduction. And. first, it appears, from the au ho. s 
 own confession, how incompetent either he himself, or any 
 
 Other human creature must be, to speak so peremptorily 
 as lie does, concerning the interpretation of a prophecy, 
 which is evidently very mysterious, and v^hich annotators 
 of all descriptions allow to be so. While some able writers 
 have modestly declined to attempt an explanation of what 
 they judged inexplicable, (believing that the true meaning of 
 the propiiecy can only be known by the accomplishment,) 
 others have boldiy ventured to unfold its darkest pages : but, 
 as mii^ht naturally be expected, they ail differ in their 
 exposition, rot even any two of them agreeing together. 
 Hence we fmd this episcopal writer condemning even some 
 of his own communion for their misapprehension and mis- 
 application of the Revelation. 
 
 " The celebrated commentators,** (says he, p. 9,) ** Bossuet 
 and Calmet, have too much contracted this admirable pro- 
 phecy, by conliiiiug its contents to so short a pe;iod as the 
 four first centuries of the Christian a^ra, and applying the 
 whole, except the two liist chapters, to the persecutions the 
 Church suUered from the Pagan Roman emperors, and to 
 the destruction of the Roman empire. For this reason, the 
 two abovementioned authors have been obliged to wrest the 
 text, and give it a forced improbable explication, to bring it 
 within their system," &c. With much more justice, however, 
 we may retort this latter charge upon himself, as well as 
 those other words of his, (p. 13) : " If a wrong system be 
 pitched upon, the difficulty of reconciling the different parts 
 of the prophecy becomes insuperable ; and this has appeared 
 fully in the attempts of several interpreters," and, among the 
 rest, in his own fallacious attempt. 
 
 Again, though he says (p. 10), "We have followed, in 
 general, the plan laid down by Mr. De la Chetardie, towards 
 the close of the last century, as it has been since improved by 
 a late French commentator on the Scripture," yet he obseiTes, 
 " we have frequently deviated from the above-named writers, 
 to substitute what we thought a more genuine explication." 
 He also tells us (p. 17): "In composing this work we have 
 freely made use of other authors, where we liked their 
 
 r 
 t 
 
H 
 
 282 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 283 
 
 1^ 
 
 opinions ; and we hope to incur no censure, when on other 
 occasions we have substituted our own. Some few passages 
 of the Apocalypse have been generally understood in the 
 same sense by all the ancient fathers of the Church and 
 modern Catholic interpreters; to these we have scrupulously 
 adhered, and founded our interpreUaion on their testnnouy. 
 In other places, where former writers took the liberty ot 
 interpretini,% and ditfered in their expositions, we have like- 
 wise thou-ht it lawful to use the same liberty. We hope 
 for indulgence, if in some few instances we appear to have 
 applied the texts of the ancient Prophets to what they have 
 not usually been applied. This freedom, we presume, is 
 allowable, when the sense of the texts has never been tully 
 settled.'' W:se in his own conceit, however, he has dis- 
 covered the true " sense of the texts," though clouds and dark- 
 ness are round about them, us appears irom the following 
 remark, (p. 12.) " Obsrurity is a general characterestic ot 
 prophecy, but it is peculiarly so of the Apocalypse, as every 
 commentator has acknowledged. This book appears at iirst 
 sight impenetrable. Let any one dip into it without having 
 a key to open to him the meaning, and he will see nothing 
 but a continued series of the most mysterious enigmas. 
 Hence it has happened that so many dift'erent explications 
 Irave been invented;" in which number we must reckon those 
 of this Catholic Bishop. 
 
 But, obscure and enigmatical as the Apocalypse confes- 
 sedly is (even by his own account), yet, forsooth, we must 
 ' take his word for it, that he has obtained (doubtless from 
 Heaven) " a key to open to him the meaning," and to let 
 others into it. And, therefore, he says (p. 13). " When the 
 plan of the book is discovered and ascertained, the difficul- 
 ties decrease, and the obscurities gradually disappear. Thus 
 a surprising light breaks in upon the Apocalypse"— which 
 light shone so bright upon him, that, by diffusing its rays, 
 others also may be illuminated. Accordingly, he says, " Who- 
 ever looks back into the history of the Church, and com- 
 pares attentively the fa^ts," (that is, if we implicitly take hm 
 
 false statement of them) "with the expressions of St John, 
 will see a distinct analogy and connection between them." 
 
 It is clear, however, from his own declarations, that the 
 Romanists themselves are divided in their opinions, con- 
 cerning the predictions of St John, and if the Protestants 
 give a totally different signification of them, who can posi- 
 tively tell where tlie truth lies. Yet this Popish prelate 
 speaks in the most dogmatical manner, as if he were actually 
 inspired, or that he could at least say, with Job, "The 
 root of the matter is in me." His arrogance will be still 
 more manifest, if we reflect on some other of his observa- 
 tions. 
 
 " When Almighty God," (says he,) " thinks fit to reveal 
 future events, he generally expresses them in obscure tenns, 
 that leave the meaning more or less uncertain. This seems to 
 be done in order to prevent the daring presumption of some 
 men, who might attempt, if the prophecies were clear, to 
 obstruct and hinder their accomplishment Others of man- 
 kind, of a timorous disposition, would be alarmed, and over 
 much terrified at disasters which they foresaw were impend- 
 ing upon them. On another hand, if futurity was clearly 
 foretold, it might seem to entrench upon that liberty, which 
 God hath been pleased to grant to man, of directing his own 
 conduct and actions. For these reasons, the generality of pro- 
 phecies are covered icith a veil of darkness and uncertainty:" 
 Now, according to his own reasoning here, is not this 
 Bishop of " the holy and infallible Catholic Church," guilty 
 of "daring presumption," in endeavouring to make prophe- 
 cies so clear as to induce wicked men to " attempt the 
 obstruction and hinderance of their accomplishment?" If, 
 ""in order to prevent this, God thinks fit to reveal future 
 events in obscure terms," is not this "Apostolical Vicar" 
 striving to frustrate God's design, by so plainly elucidating 
 those future events," that he ivho runs may read them in 
 their true light? If " prophecies are covered with a veil of 
 darkness and uncertainty" does not he, by his luminous expla- 
 nation of them, " seem to intrench upon that liberty, which 
 
 T 2 
 
 
284 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 h 
 
 r\ii 
 
 : ! 
 
 ?1 
 
 m < 
 
 God has been pleased to grant to man, of directing his own 
 conduct and actions?" By his interpretation also of the 
 " fifth trumpet," which is to sound a dreadful alarm in the 
 cars of Protestants,) and of " the fifth vial," which is to be 
 poured out upon them in all its fury, does he not hereby 
 oppose God's will, who does not make his " prophecies clear," 
 lest those " of a timorous disposition should be alarmed, 
 and overmuch terrified at disasters which they foresaw were 
 impending upon them ?" But though this " Venerable and 
 Right Reverend Lord Bishop of Rama," contrary to the 
 divine intentions, endeavours to torment men before the time, 
 I trust no Protestant will be of such a weak and "timo- 
 rous disposition," as to be frightened by declarations, which, 
 so far from having any foundation in the Scriptures of the 
 truth, are totally repugnant to them. 
 
 As the bulls of Popes, and the anathemas of their priests, 
 are so much dreaded by their blinded votaries, so this High 
 Priest among them thinks, in like manner, to draw over, by 
 threatenings, some ignorant and fearful Protestants to a pro- 
 fession of the Catholic faith. Hence he speaks thus : " The 
 plan of the Apocalypse consists in a division of the whole 
 Christian sera, to the end of time, into seven ages, corres^ 
 ponding to the seven seals, seven trumpets, and seven vials, 
 mentioned in the Apocalypse; so that to each belong a seal, 
 trumpet, and vial. The lamb holds a book sealed with seven 
 seals, which he opens one after another. This book contains 
 the history of the formation and propagation of Christ's 
 Church," (that is, the Church of Rome,) " together with the 
 opposition made to the establishment of it," by Protestants. 
 «• To every seal corresponds a trumpet, which is sounded by 
 an angel. The sound of a trumpet natuially indicates an 
 alarm ; and such is the nature of the trumpets in the Apoca- 
 lypse. They always announce events that are alarming 
 to the Church, such as persecutions, intestine convulsions, 
 occasioned by heresies, &c. After the trumpets follow the 
 Vials of the wrath of God. These convey the punishment 
 which Christ inflicts on the enemies of his people,'' viz, the 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 28» 
 
 Romish people, to whom the Protestants, and all such 
 heretics, are by them accounted enemies:' P. 10, 11. 
 
 With the same view of deterring the Protestants from 
 holding fast their religion, this learned " D. D." tells us, 
 (p. 19, 20,) that, " besides the advantage resulting from a 
 general survey of the history of the Church, another motive 
 for attending to the Apocalypse, is, the particular interest 
 eveiy Christian must take in that part of the history which 
 relates to the present time, and to those scenes which are 
 approaching. Much instruction may be drawn from the 
 present state of the Church, as described by our prophetic 
 writer ; and caution ought to be the result for what we find 
 is to happen hereafter. If God reveals to us mysteries, it is 
 for our instruction: if he discloses to us future events, doubt- 
 less he does it to give us warning to prepare for them. This 
 kind of economy Almighty God observed towards mankind 
 from the beginning, thai in consequence of such previous 
 admonitions, his faithful servants" (the Romanists) " should 
 withdraw themselves from approaching calamities, while the 
 wicked'* (Protestants) " might impute to their oxen obstinacy 
 the punishments that fell upon them," 
 
 But that Protestants may ** continue stedfaf»t in the" true 
 " faith," I would not only •remind them of the ahsurdiiies 
 already pointed out in the author's introduction (consisting 
 only of fourteen pages), but would also direct their attention 
 toother inconsistencies. He here says," If God reveals to 
 us mysteries, it i» for our instruction." Now, I kno\y not of 
 any second Revelation, (since that written by St. John,) 
 which has been given to him, or any other man, infallibly 
 explanatory of the first ; so that all the mysteries contained 
 in the Apocalypse remain my^^me^ still, and will so .remain, 
 until ** the fulness of time" shall reveal their meaning. It 
 is then alone that men shall receive ** instruction" from them. 
 Meanwhile, let us be convinced of the folly and presumption 
 of supposing we have really discovered the whole mind of 
 God, in these prophetic pages ; for this Popish Divine him- 
 self allows, that ** the obscurity which covers the Apoca- 
 

 t86 
 
 STRONG REASOKS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 267 
 
 :1 
 
 ;i^ 
 
 lypse has been the occasion of its having been so httle 
 attended to. We have therefore attempted," (says he, and a 
 vain and futile attempt it is,) " to remove that obstacle : 
 but if we have not totally succeeded, we plead indulgence 
 from the difficulty of explaining a prophecy so sublime, and 
 the most mysterious f that is extant." p. 19. Thus, from his 
 own acknowledgment, we are to consider him only as a Jai^ 
 able interpreter; and should always bear in mind those words 
 of Dr. Young, " A mystery explained is a mystery destroyed: 
 for, what is a mystery, but a thing not known r 
 
 Besides, this Popish expositor confesses, that, - in order 
 to form a regular narration," he found " it necessary to 
 transpose many things in the Apocalypse ; for as St. John 
 so often travels through the whole period of the Christian 
 5Bra, at each time relating only a part of the transactions, we 
 are obliged to collect, from different parts of the book, all 
 those facts that^ belong to the samt age." p. 16. Thus the 
 modest author, by his " regular narration," presumes to 
 correct the irregularity of the inspired Prophet, and by co//ec^ 
 in<r detached parts, and tranposing them, he makes the Scrip- 
 tures to speak what he would have them speak. By such au- 
 dacious liberty the most heretical and blasphemous doctrines 
 may be maintained. And yet, xthen speaking of his work, he 
 says, " We hope the attentive reader, when he has considered 
 the whole, will approve our sentiments, and applaud our en- 
 deavours." And again he says, " This most instructive book 
 we cannot but earnestly recommend to every Christian; and 
 we hope our recommendation will have the more weight, as 
 it is crrounded on the words of the divine book itself, " Blessed 
 is he "that readeth and heareth the words of this prophecy ; and 
 keepeth those things which are written in it." Apoc. i. 3. 
 
 There are, certainly, in the Revelation, many divine truths 
 which are easily understood, and are both edifying and con- 
 solatory to all true believers. There are threatcnings m fl 
 also sufficient to alarm the careless and the wicked, that 
 M by the terrors of the Lord," they might be " persuaded 
 to flee from the wrath to come." And it is, 1 imagine, chiefly 
 
 in allusion to tht se plain truths, promises, and menaces, in- 
 termingled with the prophetic parts, that the holy Apostle 
 declares, " Blessed is he that readeth, and heareth the words 
 of this prophecy.'* These words compose the motto in Sig. 
 Pastorini's title page ; and he makes much use of them, in 
 the hope that those who reverence the Scriptures, may be 
 induced to pay particular attention to the reading of the Re- 
 velation, accompanied with his explanation of it ; for it is 
 that which he would " earnestly recommend." 
 
 Accordingly, when expounding this passage of Scripture, 
 he says, ** We are here assured, that great is the advantage 
 of atteii .mg to what is delivered in the Apocalypse ; for they 
 are pronounced blessed, who read or hear read the loords of this 
 prophecy, and icho keep the things which are icritten in it, that 
 is, who take due notice of the things which are written in it, 
 in order to compare what is already fulfilled with the real 
 events, to beware of what is foretold to come, and to draw 
 proper instructions from both. These prophecies are the 
 more interesting, as the time is at hand, for the accomplish- 
 ment of some of them, and the rest will follow in their order.'* 
 
 In the conclusion of his work, he shews " the goodness 
 and security of God"— to his " holy Catholic Church" good- 
 ffcss, but severity towards the Pagan emperors in the first 
 ages, and to the Protestant heretics afterwards, who perse- 
 cuted her. 
 
 '* Thus have we seen" (says he, p. 468) *' the whole history 
 of the Church of Christ, traced from her birth through her 
 various difliciilties and trials, through her persecutions from 
 idolators, and convulsions by heresies ; under all which she 
 shone bright, like the sun, by the vigour of her faith and 
 fortitude : nor was it in the ])ower of hell and earth, though 
 combined together, to crush her or hinder her growth. We 
 have had a view of the admirable economy, according to 
 which Christ rules this his Church; we have seen the special 
 care with which he protects her, and with what severity he 
 punishes those who dare to injure her. 
 
 *' Nothing further now remains but to request, that this 
 

 288 
 
 »TRO»G REASONS AGAIKST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 •289 
 
 t} 
 
 present history may be received by the readers m that vievr 
 for which it is intended, namely, for their instruction Ihey 
 are now become sensible, we presume, of die utility oi study- 
 inc' the Apocalypse. And what indeed can be more exprcM 
 on that head t'han the declaration of Chnst himselt wnich 
 we beg leave here to repeat: Blessed is he, that readUh and 
 heareth the words of this prophecy ; and keepeth those things 
 Mch are written in it. (Apoc. i. 3). And again: B/e«€rf 
 is he that keepeth the words of the prophecy of this book. 
 (Apoc. xxii. 7). That this advice may be attended to is our 
 sincere wish, and here we close the present work with the 
 blessing delivered in the last verse of this admirable pro- 
 phecy : The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. 
 
 Amen." 
 
 How artful is all this ! For he evidently means to per- 
 suade his readers, that he alone is blessed, who reads the 
 Revelation according to the exposition which he has given 
 
 But if the inspired penman had any such meaning as this 
 Catholic Bishop aihxes to the text, as if it related onhj, or 
 pnncipally. to the pro/>/itiica/ part of the book, he would have 
 expressed himself with gve2itev perspicuity, saymg: " Blessed 
 is he that readeth/' and perfectly understandcth the dark 
 prophecies herein delivered. For, according to this Right 
 Rev. Doctor, ** the divine pen is visible in every line, as each 
 entenct is apparently written with such precision and accuracy, 
 that a word cannot be added or retrenched, wi thou tderogafi/ig 
 
 from the sense" 
 
 What, then, are we to think of his nume* 
 
 rous additions, and false comments, whereby " the word of 
 God is made of none eftectr so that the Lord may answer 
 him, as he did Job, " Who is this that darkeneth counsel 
 by words without knowledge ?" Job. xxxviii. 2. 
 
 Though - the most Rev. Dr. James Butler" says, in his 
 Catechism, that ** the Church cannot err in what it teachts, 
 because Christ promised to the pastors of his Church, Behold, 
 I am icith you all days, even to the consummation of the world;' 
 p. 18,) yet they who are conversant with history, and espe- 
 
 cially with that of England, will readily perceive that this 
 " Doctor of Sorbon" has greatly erred in what he teaches; 
 and that his « History of the Christian Church" is replete 
 with the foulest calumnies, and the most notorious falsehoods. 
 He displays, indeed, so much ingenuity, as to make his re- 
 presentations appear plausible; but the judicious reader will 
 discern, that what he says in support of the Romish Church, 
 and in defamation of the Protestant reformed religion, exhi- 
 bits nothing but what all the Popish writers, in general, are 
 noted for, Jesuitical sophistry, artful evasion, and impudent 
 lies. In their controversies, w^e may expect any thing from 
 them but the truth. 
 
 In reading the extracts which I shall now produce, let it be 
 
 always remembered, that as (according to Bishop Butler's 
 
 CatechismJ " there is but one true Church," namely, " the 
 
 holy Catholic Church, out of which no one can be saved,'* 
 
 (p. 16) so, when his Right Rev. brother, " Doctor Charles 
 
 Walmesley," speaks of the faithful servants of Christ, of the 
 
 people of God, of the elect, of the saints, or of the Church, 
 
 he invariably means the Church of Rome, for " there is no 
 
 other true Church besides"— and that all who belong not to 
 
 MarChurch are to be este-emed SiSthe enemies of God, upon 
 
 whom he will execute the fierceness of his wrath. The Pro- 
 
 testants, therefore (if this Popish bigot is to be believed), have 
 
 reason to tremble for their approaching doom, 
 
 I am naturally led to select some quotations, in proof of 
 this. 
 
 " The Almighty" (says he, p. 43,) « is jealous of whatever 
 injuries are offered to his servants, and takes upon himself 
 the judgment of their cause. Though, for the proof of their 
 zeal, and for tlieir greater crown, he permits their enemies 
 for awhile to i xercise their tyrannical power over them, yet 
 in his wisdom he reserves to himself a time, in which he will 
 revenge the evils done to them, and severely punish their per- 
 secutors. Not only former ages furnigh a great number of 
 known instances of such punishments, but the word of God 
 openly declares such to be the tenour of the divine economy. 
 
©90 
 
 STRO^G REASONS AGAINST 
 
 Will not God, said our Sav»our, revenge Jiis tltct icho cry to 
 him day and night : aud will he have patience in their regard? 
 J say to you that he will qukkly revenge them" 
 
 Again, he says, (p. 45,) " The Almighty, by his power, 
 carries on his Church, through the period of time he thinks 
 tit to allot it ; and, in its progress, punisheth its opposers 
 and enemies. Wl>en that period of time finishes, and the 
 seven vials are poured out, and the punishments executed, 
 then follows the general judgment ; after which, the saints 
 will enter soul and body into the temple of Heaven. Al- 
 mighty God is patient in his anger, and waits for the conver- 
 sion of his undutiful and rebellious children, but their obsti- 
 nacy arms at last his justice, and compels him to strike. 
 The Lord is a jealous God, says the Prophet, and a revenger ; 
 the Lord is a revenger and luis icrath : The Lord takes ven^ 
 geance on his adversaries, and he is angry with his enemiesr 
 ^ After shewing how God inflicted vengeance on all the em- 
 perors of Pagan Rome, who supported idolatry and cruelly 
 persecuted the Christian Church, in the first age, he speaks 
 of the visitations of God, in the second age, upon Arius, 
 whom he calls '* the ambitious apostate, and proud here- 
 siarch," and likewise of the avenging hand of God upon 
 those emperors who favoured the doctrine of Arius. 
 
 He next gives an historical account of the fall of ancient 
 Rome, with its empire, and shews, " how the Roman 
 people, conformably to the text of Scripture, tvere drenched 
 with their own hloodr in consequence of their forefathers 
 having shed, in their persecutions, the blood of God's saints. 
 
 In describing, also, " the history of the fifth age of the 
 Christian ChuxnK tie observes, (p. 1()3,) *' It is well known 
 that the Reformation, introduced by Luther and other new 
 teachers, has had too much share in the spilling of blood for 
 the cause of religion. We dont pretend to produce an ac 
 count of all the individuals that have suffered by their hands. 
 The History of the Reformation, in many cases, relates only 
 in general the massacres committed on the Catholics. The 
 Antbaptists in Germany opened the cruel scene, very soon 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS* 
 
 291 
 
 after the birth of the Protestant religion. They were ac- 
 tuated with such rancour against those whose communion 
 they ha<l left, that in 15-25 they plundered the countr>% set 
 fire to the churches and monasteries, and murdered the priests, 
 monks, and noblemen. (Amoldus Mesov. Hist, des Anabap. 
 Dupin.) The Calvinists, on another hand, wherever they 
 came, committed unheard-of violences and barbarities. 
 Dreadful was the tragedy in France, Holland, in some parts 
 of Germany, &c. Nicholas Froumenteau, a reformed minis- 
 ter, confesses that the Calvinists massacred, in the province 
 of Dauphin^ only, two hundred and fifty-six priests and one 
 hundred and twelve monks and friars. (Des Financ. de 
 France). In Holland we find that nineteen priests and reli- 
 gious men were taken by the Calvinists in Gorcum, and after 
 being made to suffer many insults, were hanged for their re- 
 ligion at the town of Bril, on the same day,* in 1572. (See 
 their History in W. I^stius, also Batavia sacra). 
 
 England also shewed itself very forward in persecuting those 
 who were attached to the ancient faith. Sir Thomas More, 
 lord high chancellor, and Fisher, bishop of Rochester, two illus- 
 trious ornaments of the nation and distinguished assertors of 
 the Catholic religion, were beheaded in 1535, for refusing to 
 subscribe to the spiritual supremacy whicli Henry VIII. 
 usurped over the Church in England. Besides, that despotic 
 and cruel monarch put to death thirteen abbots and priors, 
 about seventy-seven monks and religious persons, and many 
 of the laity. (Heylin s Hist, of the Reformation.) 
 
 " Violent was the persecution in- Queen Elizabeth's reign ; 
 it was even aggravated with severities used in the heathenish 
 times, as tortures were sometimes applied to the generous . 
 victims before they were allowed to receive the stroke of 
 death, 'inhere have been found to have suifered death for the 
 tcstimonj they held in this reign, at least one hundred and 
 twenty-four priests, and fifty-seven lay-persons ; besides others 
 who perished in prison. Under King James I. though the 
 pei-seeution somewhat abated, it did not cease. No less than 
 twenty-seven persons of different denominations were put tq 
 
 ' - it 
 
29-2 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 1- 
 
 death for the Catholic faith in this reign. Charles L was na- 
 turally of too humane a disposition to incline to persecution ; 
 but such was the iniquity of the times and the importunity 
 of malevolent persons, that he was forced away with the tide, 
 and ordered the execution of the penal laws against his Catho- 
 lie subjects. Twenty-two were sacrificed in this period. The 
 temper of the times was nearly the same during a part of 
 Charles ll's reign, and such unhappily was his compliant dis- 
 position, that twenty-four persons were put to death for the 
 Catholic faith, and many died in prison. Thus the annals of 
 England are stained with the blood of many of its own sub- 
 jeers immolated to the cause of religion. (See a particular ac 
 count of these persecutiQus in the * Memoirs of Missionary 
 
 Priests,' &c.)" 
 
 Next, speaking of the persecutions against those who had 
 embraced the Catholic faith, indifferent parts of the East In- 
 dies, under the ministry of St. Xavier, and other missionaries, 
 he adds, (p. 167,) *' We have now seen who they are that hace 
 been slain for the word of God, and for the testimouy which 
 they held. These Martyrs are the objects represented under 
 the fifth seal. As those, who suffered by the hands of the 
 Protestants, appear to be the first in time, we may (ix the 
 fifth epocha, or commencement of the fifth age of the Church 
 at the year 1325, or at the rise of Luther's Reformation, about 
 
 the year 1520, 
 
 «' We must further observe, that the blood here spilt in 
 the cause of religion is a remarkable characteristic of this 
 fifth age; as before that period, for eight or nine hundred 
 years, few are to be found who suffered for the faith. 
 
 " We now proceed with the text. And they (the above- 
 mentioned Martyrs) cried icith a loud voice, saying: How long, 
 O Lord, f holy and true J dost thou not fudge and revenge our 
 blood on them that dwell on the earth ? How long, O Lord, 
 do you defer judging our cause, you, who are holy, and must 
 detest the cruelties exercised upon us ; you, who are true, 
 and have told us, you will revenge the injuries done to your 
 servants ? Will not God revenge, says Christ, his elect, ivho 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 293 
 
 cry to him day and night ; and will he have patience in their 
 regard f I say to you, that he icill quickly revenge them. 
 (Luke, xviii. 7, 8). The Martyrs, therefore, prefer their com- 
 plaints to the throne of God, requesting the judgment of their 
 cause, not in a spirit of revenge, but that the justice and 
 sanctity of God, Avho is holy and true, may be vindicated." 
 
 Now follows the most singular exposition of Scripture, 
 which, perhaps, was ever obtruded on the Christian world. 
 ** Wonder, O heavens ! and be astonished, O earth !'* 
 
 " The sounding of the fifth Tr usvpet.-^ Apoc. chap. ix. ver. 1. 
 And theffth Angel sounded the trumpet, and I saw, says St. 
 John, a star fall from Heaven upon the earth, and there tvas 
 given to him the key of the bottomless pit,— Ver. 2. And he 
 opened the bottomless pit: and the smoke of the pit arose, as 
 the smoke of a great furnace : and the sun and the air were dark- 
 ened with the smoke of the pit.— Ver. 3. And from the smoke 
 of the pit there came out locusts upon the earth: ami power was 
 given to them, as the scorpions of the earth have power :— Ver. 
 
 4. And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the 
 grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree : but only 
 the men who have not the sign of God on their foreheads.— Ver. 
 
 5. And it was given unto them that they should not kill them; 
 but that they should torment them five months: and their tor- 
 ment toas as the torment of a scorpion ichen he striketh a man. 
 —Ver. 6. And in those days men shall seek death, and shall not 
 find it : and they shall desire to die, ajid death shall fiy from 
 them.^Ver. 7. And the shapes of the locusts were like unto 
 horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads tccre as it were 
 crowns like gold: and their faces were as the faces of men.— 
 Ver. 8. And they had hair as the hair of tvomen ; and their 
 teeth ice re as of lions.— Ver. 9. And they had breast-plates as 
 breast-plates of iron ; and the noise of their wings was as tlie 
 noise of chariots of many horses running to battle. — Ver. 10. 
 And they had tails like to scorpions, and there were stings in 
 their tails : and their poiver was to hurt .nenfice months. And 
 they had over fAem— Ver. 11. A king, the angel of the bottom- 
 
^i 
 
 «TllONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS, 
 
 295 
 
 
 % 
 
 less pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek ApoU 
 hjon: in Latin Exterminans, (that is, Destroyer.) 
 
 " Here is a description of the rise and progress of the Re- 
 formation. This trumpet begins with announcing to us the 
 fall of a star from Heaven ; a very just emblem of the apostasy 
 of Luther, who, in quality of a priest and religious man, is 
 styled a star, but renouncing his faith and vows, m which he 
 had hitherto virtuously lived, may truly be said to have fallen 
 from heaven. This star fell upon the earth, that is, upon the 
 Church, compared to the fixed solid earth, because she was 
 
 then in a state of peace. 
 
 " Martin Luther, an Augustinian friar, a bold man and ve- 
 hement declaimer, having imbibed erroneous sentiments from 
 the heretical writings of John Huss of Bohemia, took occa- 
 sion, from the publication of indulgences promulgated by 
 Pop^ Leo X. to break with the Catholic Church, and to pro- 
 pagate his new errors in 1517, at Wittemberg in Saxony. 
 He first inveighed against the abuse of indulgences; then he 
 called in question their elhcacy ; and at last totally rejected 
 them. He proceeded to broach new opinions, contrary to 
 the Catholic doctrine ; as, that remission of sins was not 
 founded on contrition, but on faith alone ; that good works 
 were not necessaiy for salvation ; and other tenets, which wUl 
 occur in the sequel. He threw olf his religious habit, re- 
 nounced the solemn vows he had made to God, abandoned his 
 cloister, and returned to the world. He declaimed against the 
 supremacy of the See of Rome, and condemned the whole 
 Church, pretending, as if Christ had abandoned it, that it 
 wanted reforming, as well in faith as discipline. Thus this 
 new Evangelist commenced that fatal defection from the an- 
 cient faith^ which was styled " Reformation," and which after- 
 wards overspread so large a part of Western Christendom. 
 Such was the dismal alarm sounded to the Church by the 
 
 fifth Trumpet 
 
 *« The fifth Seal exhibited to us only a particular interesting 
 
 circumstance of the Reformation, but now we shall see that 
 
 the Trumpet unfolds its whole history. 
 
 " There was given to him the key of the bottomless pit, 
 (ver. L) To St Peter were given the keys of Heaven, but to' 
 Luther is given the key of the bottomless pit, or Hell. Alas ! 
 what a woeful difference, and what disparity is here indicated 
 in the characters and functions of the Apostle and the Re- 
 former! Christ assured St. Pvttr, that he and the other Apos- 
 tles, who had quitted all to follow him, should at the last day, 
 ,v/^ on twehe seats judging the twelve Tribes of Israel, (Math! 
 xix. US,) But Luther, instead of meriting such a happy pre-, 
 eminence in Heaven, by having renounced all temporal enjoy- 
 ments for Christ, unfortunately retracts the renunciation he 
 had made, returns to the world, and therefore is cast down 
 like a fallen star, from Heaven to earth, forfeiting the glorious 
 crown he had seemed before to grasp in his hands. To St. 
 Peter Christ gave a super-eminent powei', and heavenly func- 
 tion: To thee will I give the Leys of the kingdom of Heaven ; 
 and whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be hound also 
 in Heaven ; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall be 
 loosed also in Heaven, (Matt xvi. 19.) But how opposite i» 
 the power and function of Luther! namely, to open the bottom^ 
 less pit, or infernal abyss, from whence flowed a stream of cala- 
 mities that fell upon the kingdom of Christ on earth. Our 
 Saviour said to St Peter, Thou art Peter, and upon this rock / 
 will build my Church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail 
 against it, (Matt. xvi. 18.) But Luther boldly opened the bot- 
 tomless pit, or the gates of Hell, to endeavour to prevail against 
 that Church. St Peter was constituted by Christ the chief 
 pastor of his whole flock ; Feed my lambs, feed my sheep, (Joan, 
 xxi. \Q. 17.) said Christ to him. But our Reformer, by his 
 own authority, declared himself head and ringleader of a mul- 
 titude of sectaries, xcho, like devouring wolves, have Imd wasttr 
 the fold of Christ. 
 
 " And he opened the bottomless pit: and the smoke of the pit 
 arose, as the smoke of a great furnace, (ver. 2.) Luther therefore 
 opened the door of Hell, and there issued out a thick smoke, 
 as from a great furnace. What can tiiis thick smoke be, but 
 a strong spirit of seduction, whidi had been hatched in Hell, 
 
tQ6 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THK CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 297 
 
 in 
 
 u 
 
 t^ 
 
 or had the Devil for its parent, and which, at Luther 8 open- 
 ing Heirs door, immediately burst out. Impregnated with 
 this steam, or spirit of seduction, he brought forth a doctrme 
 biff with delusion and error. And as the steam he imbibed 
 was hot, as coming from a great furnace, he propagated his 
 doctrine with heat, violence, and insolence. 'I now declai;e 
 (says he, speaking to the bishops,) that for the future I will 
 not vouchsafe you so much honour, as to subn.it myself or 
 doctrine to your judgment, or that of an angel from Heaven. 
 (Preface to his book, adversus falso-nominatum ordinem bpis- 
 toporum.) He wrote a book which he entitled, * Against the 
 execrable Bull of Antichrist,' meaning the bull of his con- 
 demnation bv Pope Leo X : this book he concluded with these 
 words : * In 'the same manner that they excommunicate me, 1 
 excommunicate them again.' 
 
 « The other Reformers imbibed the same hot steam, that 
 issued out of the infernal abyss. They in consequence broach- 
 ed new doctrines, which they propagated and defended with 
 such heat and vehemence, as to occasion every where seditions 
 and insurrections, which they seemed to glory m. 
 
 « And the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke oj 
 the pit, (ver. %) The spirit of seduction, denoted by the smoke 
 of the pit, produced a multitude of erroneous doctrines, that 
 darkened the light of faith, signified by the sun, and the purity 
 of morals, indicated by the^er. The light of faith, which is 
 the word of God, may well be represented by the ... the 
 great luminary of the universe, according to that ot Psa m 
 cxviii 105. 'Thy word, O Lord, is a lamp to my feet, and a 
 licrht to my paths.' And as the air is the spring of man s 
 reVation and life. It may be a just type of morality, which 
 gives spiritual life and worth to all human actions. One prin- 
 cipal design of the Refonnation was, to free men from two 
 troublesome restraints, of subjecting their understanding to 
 the mysteries of iaith, and of being bound down m their ac- 
 tions to the strict laws of morality. The new Teachers preach- 
 ed up a hitherto unheard-of ' Evangelical liberty,' as they 
 styled It by virtue of which they were masters to model their 
 
 belief and practice, as it suited their inclinations. In pursu- 
 ance of this conimorlioiis doctine, they dissected the Catholic 
 Faith, till they reduced it to a mere skeleton ; they lopt off the 
 reality of the body and hlool of Christ in the holy Eucharist, 
 the divine Christian sacrilice otVered in the mass, confession of 
 sins, most of the sacraments, penitential exercises, several of 
 the canonical books of tiie Scripture, the invocation of saints, 
 celibacy, most of the general councils of the Church, and all 
 present Church authority; they perverted the nature of justi- 
 fication, asserting tiiat faith alone suffices to justify man ; they 
 made God the auttior of sin, and maintained the observarice 
 of the Commandments to be impossible. 
 
 " These and other errors were taught by most of the mo- 
 dern Reformers ; and they all agreed in renouncing all sub- 
 mission to the Church of Rome. Hear what Luther says, 
 in the preface to his book de ahrogandd Missc privata. 
 • With how many powerful remedies and most evident Scrip- 
 tures have I scarce been able to fortify my conscience so, as 
 to dare alone to contradict the Pope, and believe him to be 
 Antichrist, the bishop his apostles, and the universities his 
 brothelhouses.* In his book de judicio Ecclesiw de 'gravi 
 doctrina : * Christ takes from the bishops, doctors, and coun- 
 cils, both the right and power of judging controversies, and 
 gives them to all Christians in general.' Lastly, hear his 
 modest censure on the Council of Constance, and those that 
 composed it. * All John Huss's articles were condemned at 
 Constance by Antichrist and his Apostles,' (meaning the 
 Pope and Bishops), in that synod of Satan made up of "most 
 wicked sophisters ; and you, most holy Vicar of Christ, I tell 
 you plainly to your face, that all John Huss's condemned 
 doctrines are Evangelical and Christian, but all yours are 
 impious and diabolical.' Many more instances n^ght be 
 brought of this head-reformer's extravagant opinions and 
 assertions ; but these may suffice. 
 
 ** To enumerate the errors of all the Reformers would 
 exceed the limits of this work, I shall therefore only add the 
 principal heads of the doctrine of Calvin and the Calvinists: 
 
 IT 
 
298 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 299 
 
 ■..»• 
 
 . ».■ 
 
 viz 1. Baptism is not necessary for salvation ; 2. hkevvist* 
 crood works are not necessary. 3. Man has no free will. 4. 
 4dam could not avoid his fall. 5. A great part of mankind 
 are created to be damned, independently of their dements. 
 6. Man is justified by faith alone; and that justification, once 
 obtained, cannot be lost, even by the most atrocious crimes. 
 7 The true faithful are also mfallibly certain of their salva- 
 tion 8. The Eucharist is no more than a figure of the body 
 and blood of Christ.^Thus was the whole system of faith 
 
 and morality overturned. 
 
 « The above short detail shews a palpable reason, why our 
 modern apostles set such a value on their new discovered 
 principle of ' Evanc^elical liberty/ as it opened to them so 
 spacious a lawn, m which they could range at their ease 
 The hardships of mortification, the painful restrictions ot 
 penance, were not to be admitted into these Elysian fields: 
 the sensual appetites claimed here their right of abode All 
 Church-authority was banished from this realm of liberty. 
 They professed themselves judges of every thing relating to 
 religion, and its foundations and fences they levelled at their 
 pleasure. Tradition they totally abolished ; and though they 
 could not reject the whole canon of the Scriptures, as being 
 universally acknowledged to be the word of God, they had 
 however the presumption to expunge some books of it. that 
 did not coincide with their own opinions; and the rest they 
 assumed a right to explain as they thought fit. Hence fol- 
 lowed various arbitrary explications of the most important 
 texts which became so many fountains that issued out 
 troubled streams of doctrine. But this was a natural con- 
 sequence. For, 'if a^, man consults only ^ himself, his pas- 
 sions and conceits will certainly dictate to him what may 
 sei-ve for their own gratification, and which must of course 
 contradict the doctrine of Revelation, which tends to bridle 
 them. What wonder then, if the comments and glosses ot 
 these new interpreters have so much obscured and disfigured 
 the face of religion? Moreover, to complete the work, and 
 to coaciliate people^s minds more easily to their iimovations, 
 
 they pretended to charge the old doctrine with absurdities 
 and errors, as if Christ had suffered his Church to be totally 
 eclipsed and lost ; whereas he had told his Apostles, and in 
 them their successors, the pastors of his Church : Behold I am 
 with you all days^ even to the consummation of the worlds 
 (Matt, xxviii. 20.) But it plainly appeared that the objected 
 absurdities and errors had no reality, and were no more 
 than misrepresentations contrived on purpose. 
 
 " In this view how many notorious falsehoods were pub- 
 lished, which are still kept up, concerning the Catholic wor- 
 ship of relicks and images, concerning confession of sinb^ 
 indulgencies, purgatory, &c ? And thus again they endeavour 
 to throw a cloud over the face of the Catholic religion. From 
 what has been said it appears then fully, how the sun and the 
 air were darkened with the smoke of the pit, 
 
 *^ And from the smoke of the pit there came out locus! s upon 
 the Earth, (ver. 3.) From the smoke of the abyss is gene- 
 rated a swarm of locusts that disperse themselves over the 
 Earth: the meaning of which is, that spirit of seduc- 
 tion denoted by the smoke of the abyss, raised up a number 
 of sectaries or reformers, as they called themselves, who spread 
 themselves into all parts of the Catlwlic Church. Luther was 
 first intoxicated with this delusive spirit which presently after 
 insinuated itself into Carlostadius, Zuinglius, CEcolampadius, 
 Melancton, Bucer, Muncer, Calvin, Henry VHf. of England, « 
 Cranmer, and many others. Being of the nature of locusts, 
 these Reformers were unconnected, acknowledged no subor- 
 dination among themselves, and even quarrelled with one 
 another. They all taught difl'erent doctrines, and scarce agreed 
 in any other thing, but in their endeavours to destroy the an- 
 cient faith, and corrupt the Christian principles of morality. 
 In this indeed they jointly exhibited a vehement eagerness 
 equal to the voracity of locusts. * Heretics are compared to 
 locusts, (says St. Jerom,) because locusts are a species of 
 insects extremely hurtful to mankind, as they occasion famine, 
 eat up the harvest, and even strip the trees and vines,* (in 
 cap. 13, Osee). The new doctrines, being calculated to 
 
 u 2 
 
>ir 
 
 300 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 301 
 
 i\ " 
 
 I 
 
 ii 
 
 gratify the vicious inclinations of the hunmrt heart .l.flused 
 themselves w.th the rapidity of an inundation. Fredenc, 
 elector of Saxonv. Joh.i Frederic, his successor, and 1 h.l.p. 
 landgrave of Hesse, became Luther's disciples, and their res- 
 pective states followed their example. Gustavus Lncus. k,„g 
 of Sweden, and Christicrn 111, king of Denmark, dec ared also 
 in favour of Lu^li^anism. It likewise got footing m Hungary, 
 and spread itselfby degrees into Brandenburgh. romerau.a 
 Mecklenburgh, Holstein, &c. Poland, after tasting of a great 
 variety of doctrines, could pitch upon none, but lelt to every 
 individual the liberty of choosing for hin.self. Four cantons ot 
 Switzerland received Zuinglius's Creed, at the Conference held 
 at Bern in 1^28. Th.se cantons afterwards makmg all.ana. 
 with Geneva, exchanged their doctrine for that of Calvm 
 And now, of the thirteen cantons that compose the states ot 
 Switzerland, six of them are Protestant. Muncer, a d.sc.ple of 
 Luther, deserting from his master, set up for Doctor himself, 
 and, with Nicholas Stork, gave birth to the sect of Anabapt.^ , 
 which was propagated in Suabia and other provmces ol Ger- 
 many, in the Low Countries. &c. Calvin, a man of a bold, 
 obstinate spirit, artful and indefatigable in his >^b-'-^; '""Ci- 
 tation of Luther commenced also Reformer. He procured hi. 
 new tenets to be received at Geneva in 1541. After his death 
 the same doctrine was carried on by his successor Bcza and it 
 made its way into several provinces of France, where its p o- 
 ZL obtained the appellation of Huguenots. I insinuated 
 itself into some parts of Germany. Hungary. Bohemia, and 
 became the established religion of Holland. Calv.msm wa 
 also imported by John Knox into Scotland, where, under the 
 nameofPresbvterianism, it took deep root, and overspread 
 tha. M'hole fac; of that kingdom. In fine, to such a degree 
 prevailed the licentious spirit of dogmatising, that ever>' one 
 thought he had an equal right with Luther. Zuinglius, or any 
 other, to interpret the Scriptures and form his own creed 
 On this principle the ditferent sects split into a "^u^itude of 
 parties following ditterent heads, who every day coined new 
 religions. Thus the body of Anabaptists alone became di- 
 
 vided into at least thirty-two different sects. By these di- 
 visions the principal lea^lcrs found themselves frustrated in the 
 attachment of their prosiMytes. who upon every occasion left 
 them to follow new teachers. 
 
 " But, among the reformed nations, none drank more deeply 
 of the cup of error, than England. This country had been, 
 during many centuries, conspicuous in the Christian world 
 for the orthodoxy of its belief, as also for the number of 
 saints it had sent to Heaven. But by a misfortune never to 
 be sufficiently lamented, and by an unfathomable judgment 
 from above, its Church shared a fate which seemed the least 
 to threaten it. The lust and avarice of one despotic sovereign 
 threw down the fair edifice, and tore it olf from the rock 
 on which it had hitherto stood. Henry VIII, at first a valiant 
 asserter of the Catholic faith against Luther, giving way to 
 violent passions which he had not resolution to curb, re- 
 nounced the supreme jurisdiction which the Pope had always 
 held in the Church, presumed to arrogate to himself that 
 power in his own dominions, and thus gave a deadly blow to 
 religion. He then forced his subjects into the same fatal 
 defection, and thus opened the way to his successors to pour 
 in upon the kingdom tiie whole spiVit of the Reformation. 
 Once introduced, it soon overspread the land. Being, from 
 its nature, limited by no fixed principle, but depending upon 
 tlie arbitrary determination of every private man, it has since 
 taken a hundred different shapes, in Protestants. Presbyterians, 
 Anabaptists, Quakers. Arians, Moravians, Hutchinsonians, 
 Methodists, and many more. Such was the swarm of locusts 
 that eclipsed the face of religion, which had long shone so 
 bright in that island. 
 
 " In taking a general view of the infinite variety of new 
 teachers that sprung up at tliis time, jarring among themselves, 
 corrupting the genuine sources of faith and morals, and de- 
 luding their fellow-creatures with poisonous novelties, one 
 cannot help observing with how great propriety they had 
 been long before discribed by the Apostle St. Jude in the 
 following manner. These are clouds without water, which are 
 
30-2 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 303 
 
 
 
 
 t 
 
 
 carried about by winds ; trees of the autumn, unfruitful, twice 
 dead, plucked up by the roots ; raging ivaves of tht sea, foam- 
 ing out their own confusion ; wandering stars, (Ep. v. 1-2, 13.) 
 They are first compared to clouds without ivater, or that pro- 
 mise water, but are carried about by winds without reiving uiiy ; 
 that is, these new teachers promise genuine apostol.cal aoc 
 trine, which they call Reformation, but it is mere deceit. 
 They are termed autumnal trees, unfruitful, twice dtad, plucked 
 up by the roots, that is, they are become ban en Chris- 
 tians, bringing forth no fruit, because, like dead trees plucked 
 up from the earth, they are bamshed out of the Chu.<:h. from 
 which they ought to receive their spiritual life and noiinsU. 
 ment. They arelike the raging waves of the sea, foaming out th.ir 
 confusion; they are turbulent, proud, rebeUious a-ainst their 
 mother, the Church, which they furiously assault with slamler, 
 calumny, and blasphemy. Lastly, like icandering stars, they 
 wander about in mazes of imaginary knowledge, passing 
 from one error to another, without knowing where to fix 
 
 their steps. 
 
 " And poicer was given to them (the locusts), as the scor- 
 pions of the earth have power, (ver. 3.) Thtse locusts have 
 peculiar qualities, not to be found in the common locusts. 
 They have the power of scorpions, that is, a power of 
 stinging. This allegory shews, that the reformed sects, 
 here signified by the locusts, were impowered, by the 
 Divine permission, to sting, or violently to torment those 
 of the Catholic Communion, whom they had left, and 
 against whom they conceived and still retain a rancorous 
 
 animosity. 
 
 '*And it icas commanded them (the locusts) that they 
 Should not hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, 
 nor any tree : but only the men who have not the sign of God 
 on their foreheads, (ver. 4.) The locusts, or the sects of Pro- 
 testants, arc not allowed by Almighty God to hurt the grass 
 of the earth, that is, the whole body of the common faithful; 
 nor every green thing, as the Greek and Latin texts express 
 it, that is, not all the vegetable greens that shoot up higher 
 
 than grass, denoting- the princes, magistrates, and othei-s 
 superior in dignity to the commonality; nor are they 
 allowed to hurt every free, or all the pastors with their 
 clergy. In short, they are not permitted to pervert the 
 whole or any of the three diiferent classes of the faithful, 
 namely, the ministers of religion or the clergy, the princes 
 and persons in civil dignity, and the common people. 
 
 "The expression, however, of all or every one indicates 
 that some of all these sorts will be ensnared. In general, 
 they will not be allowed to seduce any others of the Church's 
 members, but those who have not the sign of God on their 
 foreheads, that is, those who are not solidly fixed in their 
 faith and morals, but suft'er themselves to be influenced 
 by their passions, by worldly views or pleasures, and who 
 consequently have not courage to withstand the temptation, 
 nor to fight under the banner of religion. These have not 
 the sign of God on their foreheads : they cowardly give up this 
 characteristic sign, the Cross of Christ, with its persecutions, 
 self-denials, and mortifications: they go over to their ene- 
 mies who have seduced them, and from them learn to have 
 a horror of imprinting that salutary mark on their foreheads, 
 which was so much the practice of antiquity, as Tertullian 
 informs us. * At every step, (says he,) whenever we come 
 in or go out, when we put on our clothes or shoes, when we 
 wash, when we sit down to table, when we light a candle, 
 when we go to bed — we imprint on our foreheads the sign 
 of the Cross," (Lib. de Coron. Milit. c. 3.) 
 
 " From the present text of the Apocalypse under our con- 
 sideration, it appears then, that, though Almighty God, in 
 the unsearchable ways of his wisdom, allows the Protestant 
 sects to have a certain degree of power, yet in his goodness 
 he puts a bridle to this power, and prescribes to it deter- 
 minate limits, lest it should over-run too great a part of 
 Christ's kingdom. Hitherto shalt thou come, and shalt go 
 no further, and here thou shalt break thy swelling waves, 
 (Job. xxxviii. 11.) Mahometism and the Greek Schism had 
 already torn away a large body of the Catholic community? 
 
304 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 30j 
 
 ,* If 
 
 •-ft 
 'it 
 
 but the Supreme Ruler of the universe had promised, that 
 his Church should stand as visible as if seated on a moun- 
 tain, and that Hell itself should not prevail against' it 
 These assurances are a secu;e bulwark to it, and though 
 the Sovereign Disposer has permitted the new-generated 
 poison of the present age to infect some part of his Church, 
 the greater part is preserved sound and untainted, and shmes 
 forth with brighter lustre to the world. Many large coun- 
 tries rejected the Reformation, and stedfastiy adhere.l to 
 the ancient faith, and even in most of those kingdoms, 
 which adopted the innovation, there are still rema.nu.< , by 
 the providence of God, some that refuse to bow their knees 
 to Baal, and though few, like grapes remauung artt ; the 
 vintage, they stand as a testimony against the others, who 
 ought to have maintained the same truth wit»i them. 
 
 " Besides the above-mentioned particulars, we ought not 
 to overlook another check, which has b^^on put upon the 
 efforts of the Refojmation. While powerful pi uices and great 
 armies undertook to propagate the Protestant religion, the 
 Almighty thought lit to interpose, and gave to the Catholic 
 powers sulhcieiU .irength to oppose the invasion, and has 
 ever since supported them in such a manner as to make 
 them a match against their enemies. 
 
 *^Jnd it tcasf:iv€n unto them (the locusts), that they should 
 not kill them; hut that ihey should torment them Jite mouths; 
 and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion xvhen he 
 strikes a man, (ver. 5.) Here is a second 'uib put upon the 
 power of the reformed societies. In the last article we saw, 
 that their power of seducing others to embrace their doctrine 
 was confined to those who had not the sign of God on their 
 foreheads, or who by their depravity or bad dispositions lay 
 
 open to such seduction. 
 
 " Such was the extent of their power in the spiritual 
 
 ^vay. 
 
 " Here the boundary of their tenii^oral power is fixed. 
 
 " They are not permitted to kill them, that is, utterly to 
 destroy and exterminate the Catholics. 
 
 " In the first heat of the Reformation, such was the violence 
 of the Protestants, that they breathed nothing less than war 
 and destruction. In their progress they murdered great num- 
 bers of the Catholics, demolished their churches and monas- 
 teries, and carried devastation through the land. But the 
 Almighty, in his eternal wisdom, had resolved to restrain 
 their power, and, by his Apostle St. John, had long ago pub- 
 lished his decree, contained in the present text, that they 
 should not proceed beyond such limits which he had fixed. 
 Their expectations were consequently frustrated, and they 
 were obliged to sit down with less extent of conquest than 
 they had grasped in their thoughts. In a similar manner. 
 Almighty God had often permitted his favourite people the 
 Jews to be harassed and oppressed by the foreign nations 
 their enemies, but he never suffered them to be extinguished. 
 
 ** In fine, experience shews that, notwithstanding the 
 Protestant Princes have taken such pains to extirpate the 
 Catholic religion in their respective states, they have not been 
 able to compass it. The Catholics have been grievously 
 oppressed, and many even put to death : nevertheless, though 
 much reduced in some of those countries, by the divine pro- 
 tection they still there subsist. 
 
 " But it was given unto them (the locusts), that they should 
 torment them five months. The kind of torment here meant, is 
 expressed in the subsequent w^ords : And their torment was 
 as the torment of a scorpion when he strikes a man. Certainly 
 a very sharp torment or pain, to be like that occasioned by 
 the sting of a scorpion. This comparison shews plaitjly that, 
 though the power of the Protestants was limited by the pro- 
 vidence of God, they were nevertheless allowed to molest 
 and persecute those of the Catholic Communion. They were 
 restrained, as we have just now seen, from exterminating the 
 body of the Catholics, but by their persecutions, seditions, 
 and wars, they cut off many, and the rest were made to 
 suffer extreme hardships and miseries. In those countries, 
 where the sovereigns embraced the Reformation, they generally 
 seized upon the revenues of the Church, and thus reduced the 
 
306 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIM*. 
 
 307 
 
 V ■ 
 
 n t 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 clergy to the pinching anguishes of want. The bulk ot the 
 Catholics were forced to adopt the religion of their princes, 
 or fly their native country, or, in line, be doomed to lie under 
 the most heavy oppression. Are not these sufferings well com- 
 pared to the sting of a scorpion ? Besides, who is ignorant of 
 the cruel persecuting laws, that were in those times enacted 
 in most of the Protestant states against the Catholic re- 
 ligion? Among the rest, who is not acquainted with the 
 severe laws of England and Ireland? They are such, as to 
 be owned by those of their own people who have a sense of 
 humanity, to be barbarous, to be a scandal to the Christian 
 religion,''and a disgrace to civilized nations. In consequence 
 of these statutes, how many persons have been stript of their 
 estates? How many individuals have been imprisoned, ba- 
 nished, even put to death ? How many families have been 
 reduced to beggary, and ruined? Are not sucli hardships 
 and oppressions to be deemed severe, and as acute in the pain 
 they cause, as the stinging of a scorpion ?* 
 
 " It is said, this torture was to last/ie months. Here the 
 Almighty prescribes a term to that great severity, the Pro- 
 testants were permitted to exercise against the true servants 
 of God. This term is live months, or one hundred and fifty 
 days, giving thirty days to every month, which way of 
 reckoning by round numbers is usual with the Prophets. 
 
 ♦ Have the Catholics, then, no stings in their tails, like 
 scorpions ^ Are there no " severe laws" against Protestants 
 in Popish countries? Ave they never" imprisoned, banished or 
 put to death" ? Where are they tolerated in the manner that 
 Catholics are in this kingdom ? Restraming laws we have- 
 but they are never put in force, till the safety of the state, or 
 .personal security requires it. Whereas, in Popish Inquisw 
 tions, at this very day, Protestants are racked and murdered, 
 not tbr sedition nor rebellion, but for refusing to kneel down 
 in the streets, while the Host is passing, or for daring to 
 speak a word against the Catholic religion. Wherever thatjs 
 established, if a man had the courage to revile it, as thi 
 Catholic bishop does our religion, no punishment would b 
 thought bad enough for him. 
 
 But it is to be observed, that days, in the prophetic style, 
 are sometimes used for years. Thus it is in that celebrated 
 prophecy in Daniel of seventy weeks, or four hundred and 
 ninety days, understood by all the interpreters to mean four 
 hundred and ninety years, which were to run from the term 
 mentioned in that prophecy to the death of Christ the Mes- 
 siah. (Dan. ix. 24.) Another instance of the same way of 
 reckoning occurs in the book of Ezekiel, w here God speaks 
 to that prophet in this manner. Thou shall take upon thee the 
 iniquity of the house of Juda forty days, A day for a year, 
 yea, a day for a year I hare appointed to thee, (Ezek. iv. 6.) 
 On this principle, therefore, as the space of five months, 
 taken according to the common acceptation, gives too short a 
 period to comprise all the transactions mentioned in our text 
 concerning the Reformation, we shall count one hundred and 
 fifty years for the one hundred and fifty days contained in 
 five months ; during which time the locusts were impowered 
 to ^sting, that is, the Protestants were allowed to torment so 
 rigorously the Catholics. If, then, the one hundred and fifty 
 years be counted from the year 1525, about which time those 
 violences began to take place, they will bring us to the year 
 1675. Some part of the history of the Reformation relating 
 to this period has been presented to us in the preceding texts, 
 and the rest will appear, as we shall presently see, in the sub- 
 sequent verses of our prophetic author. 
 
 " And in those days men shall seek death, and shall not find 
 it : and they shall desire to die, and death shall fly from tliem, 
 (ver. 6.) Here is a lively picture of the extreme miseries, 
 that the Catholics suffered in consequence of the violence 
 and fury with which the Reformation was carried on. And 
 does not the history of those times evince the truth of it? On 
 one side, many, finding themselves rifled and stripped of all 
 that belonged to them, actuated by the sting of misery, 
 equal to tliat of the scorpion, took up arms to recover by 
 force what they could not hope for by any other means. The 
 poor and distressed also, who received their subsistence frona 
 <he charitable a^nd constant liberalities of the monasteries, 
 
308 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 309 
 
 I'l 
 
 n 
 
 m 
 
 5 ' 
 
 
 being deprived of all resource by the dissolution of those 
 houses, drew courage from despair, 
 
 Una salus victis nullam speraro salutem.— Hrg. 
 Despair of life, the means of living shews.— Drt/c/. 
 
 and fled to arms, though unjustifiably ; and joining with tlic 
 othera, sought for death in battle, rather than die by hunger, 
 though perhaps it was not their lot tojind that death. 
 
 «' Likewise, how miserable was the condition of that niuU 
 titude of religious people of both sexes, who were ejected 
 from their houses, and robbed of all their possessions ! They 
 had abandoned the world, and consecrated themselves to God 
 in solitary retreats. Unacquainted with manual labour, and 
 unaccustomed to every art of providii.g subsistence, they 
 solely attended to the service of God and to the preparing of 
 themselves for another world, depending entirely tor the sup- 
 port of present life on the pious benefactions of those per- 
 sons, who, to promote the Divine worship and all the hei^oic 
 virtues of the Christian religion, had endowed those houses 
 with suitable revenues. But now a storm, like a hurricane, 
 rose and burst upon them. One would have thought that an 
 army of Goths or Danes had invaded the land. The recluses 
 saw themselves assaulted by brutish rufhans. and forcibly 
 driven out of Iheir sanctuaries. They saw their churches 
 violated, and, together with their houses, plundered and 
 pulled down to the ground. Thus were those ancient nurse- 
 Ties of piety and learning reduced to a heap of rums; a last- 
 ing monument of the spirit that guided the Reformation. 
 
 " By such inhuman proceedings a great number of rehgious 
 men and women saw themselves stript of every commodity 
 of life. They saw themselves exposed to the inclemency ot 
 the w'eather,\o the distresses of want, to the insults of an 
 insolent populace worked up to enthusiasm ; in fine, they 
 found Uiemselves turned out into a wide world, without 
 knowing which way to direct their steps. What wonder, if 
 in this destitute forlorn condition they should rather desire to 
 die than drag on so wretched a life ? Had the executioner 
 
 been sent instead of a commissioner, and required the lives 
 of all those who refused to sacrifice their conscience to the 
 new religion, they would have esteemed themselves happy 
 in acquiring the crown of martyrdom. But to be exposed to 
 all sorts of temptations, to lasting wretchedness, and to see 
 the Church of God trampled under foot, were more cruel 
 afflictions to them than death. These, however, they were 
 condemned to bear, and to be deprived of the blessing of 
 giving up their lives. Thcjj desind to die, and death fled from 
 them, 
 
 " And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared 
 unto battle, (ver. 7.) Here is expressed the spirit of sedition 
 and rebellion, that animated the Reformers and their pro- 
 selytes. Luther proclaimed himself the Leader in this as 
 well as other articles of the new Discipline, and he levelled his 
 first attacks against the Church. He set out with inveighing 
 against all Church government, he declaimcid against the 
 Clergy, and especially against the superiority of the Pope, 
 though but a little before he had professed all obedience to 
 him. Having gained for his disciple and protector, John 
 Frederick, elector of Saxony, he kept no fuithei- measures, 
 but declared open war against the bishops and the whole 
 ecclesiastic order. In his rage he composed a book on the 
 subject, in which he said : * All those who will venture their, 
 lives, their estates, their honour, and their blood in so Christian 
 a work, as to root out and destroy all bishopricks and bishops 
 (who are the ministers of Satan), and to pluck up by the 
 roots all their authority and jurisdiction in the world ; these 
 persons are the true children of God, and obey his command- 
 ments' (—Contra statum EcclesidE etfalsonominatum ordinem 
 Episcoporum). Again, in his book against Sylvester Prieras : 
 • If, (says he,) we dispatch thieves by the gallows, highwaymen 
 by the sword, heretics by fire ; why do we not rather attack 
 with all kinds of arms these masters of perdition, these cardi- 
 nals, these Popes, and all this sink of the Romish Sodom which 
 corrupts without ceasing the Church of God, and wash our 
 
 t.. 
 
310 
 
 ITRONO REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS/ 
 
 311 
 
 
 :?■-■ 
 
 
 hand8 in their blood.' Thus preached the new Rehgiomst. 
 nor did he cease, till he got the bishops expelled from 
 Saxony, and Hesse, and their authority extinguished. 
 
 The episcopal historian then goes on to shew, that " the 
 heats occasioned by Luther's seditious doctrine were so much 
 fomented and increased by his disciples and other new 
 Reformers, that they soon kindled into a flame, which 
 burst forth in Germany, Switzerland, France, and the Nether- 
 lands, and burned with great fury. And in " England. 
 Denmark, and Sweden." (he observes) " the Reformat.on 
 was introduced by the kings themselves, who compelled their 
 
 subjects to receive it. 
 " Thus, {adds he,) the shapes of the locusts were like unto 
 
 horses prepared to battle. 
 
 " And on their heads (the heads of the locusts) were as it 
 were crowns like gold, (ver. 7.) The locusts bore upon their 
 heads something that resembled crowns, which crowns ap- 
 peared to be of gold. This allusion points at the pride and 
 presumption of the new Sectaries, who assumed to themselves 
 the high function of preaching the Gospel, without having any 
 lawful mission; they pretended to be the true mimsters of God, 
 , without shewing any credentials from him; they set up for 
 Apostles of Christ, but could not produce his commission. 
 Luther styled himself, * by the Grace of God, Ecclesiastes or 
 preacher of Wittemberg,' (Epist. ad falso nommat. Epis.) 
 He treated with the utmost contempt the Pope and the bi- 
 shops, as we have already seen. As to the fathers of the 
 Church, he said « they were all blind,' (lib. de serv. Arbit.) 
 And he concerned not himself what Ambrose, Augustin, the 
 Councils, or practice of ages said,; (lib. contra Regem An- 
 gliae.) Then he boasted of his own merits : * The Gospel, 
 (says he,) has been so fully preached by us, that even in the 
 times of the Apostles it was not so well understood,' (Serm. 
 de Evers. Jerusalem.) In this manner Luther set a crowft 
 upon his own head, and the whole troop of Reformers after 
 him crowned themselves in the same manner. Such crowns. 
 
 the work of self-conceit and arrogance, could not be real 
 crowns, but only as it were crowns, that is, the mere appear- 
 ances of such. * 
 
 " It was said of the A postles of Christ : Thou shalt establish 
 them princes over all the earth, (Psalm xliv. 17.) The con- 
 version of numberless nations to Christ by their ministry had 
 merited to them the title of Princes and the right of w^earing 
 crowns. The Reformers claimed the same honours. But the 
 crowns of the Apostles were of pure gold, because their doc 
 trine, which flow^ed from Christ the source, was pure and ge- 
 nuine. Whereas the doctrine of our modern Apostles, being 
 derived from no other source but their own invention, and being 
 contrary to the doctrine preserved in that Church which was 
 planted and formed by the primitive Apostles ; such new-de- 
 vised doctrine, I say, can be nothing else but error and rfe- 
 lusion, and consequently their apparent crowns are not of 
 pure but of counterfeit gold, or as the text expresses it, they 
 are like to gold, or really mere tinsel.— These crowns on then* 
 heads also shew clearly their general spirit of independency. 
 " And their faces (the faces of the locusts) were as the faces 
 of men, (ver. 7.) The locusts appeared to St. John with faces 
 of men. Here is marked out the delusive appearance of 
 the modern Sectaries. They pretended that faith had been 
 adulterated, and that the morals of mankind were guided by 
 erroneous principles. They therefore assumed the province 
 of rectifying both, by preaching up a * Reformation.* For 
 this purpose these * Reformers' framed new systems of reli- 
 gion. They proposed each of them their own creed for set- 
 tling the articles of belief, and a new plan of morality for 
 the direction of human actions. All this was devised, as they 
 alleged, to correct the defects and errors of the Catholic doc- 
 trine. Thus they put on the faces of men, that is, they an- 
 nounced themselves as teachers of orthodox and holy doctrine: 
 and by this means they deluded those icho had not the sign 
 of God upon their foreheads, that is, the careless and vicious. 
 But it soon appeared that these faces of men were no more 
 than visoiB resembling human faces, that the specious name 
 
 5*1 
 
31t 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 313 
 
 hi*. 
 
 .■sf 
 
 ..V 
 
 ^: 
 
 * < •* > 
 
 • J' 
 
 of ' Reformation' was only a mask made use of to mstil their 
 treacherous doctrine with more ease and subtlety. The mask 
 was soon removed, and their doctrine, when applied to the 
 true criterion, was evidently discovered to be false. It dis- 
 a-reed with that which Christ had deposited with his Apostles, 
 a^d which he charged them to impart to the rest of mankmd ; 
 at the same time assuring them and their successors that m 
 order to enable them to execute their commission with lide- 
 Hty hetoould himsdfbe with them to the end of thetoorld: 
 (Matt. xxViii. 20.) And that the spirit of truth should abide 
 y)ith them for ever : (John xiv. 16. 17.) That the new-invented 
 maxims were of bad tendency, the effects soon proved. In- 
 stead of a Reformation, they produced a general licentious- 
 ness. This appeared in the seditions, insurrections, and vio- 
 lences committed on all sides. Complaints were also heard 
 from all quarters, of excessive looseness of manners. The Lu- 
 theran magistrates of several imperial cities in Germany peti- 
 tioned the Emperor, Charles V.. to re-establish by his autho- 
 rity auricular confession, as a check upon the then prevailing 
 libertinism. And indeed it was highly probable, that from 
 the pretended ' Christian liberty' which was then preached, 
 a deluge of vice would have diffused itself, had not the civil 
 
 power slept it to stem it. ' 
 
 « Erasmus, though no zealous advocate for the Catholics, 
 could not help observing the degeneracy of morals brought on 
 by the change of religion : ' Take a view,' says he, ' of this 
 Evangelical people' (the Protestants)—' Perhaps 'tis my mis- 
 fortune ; but I never yet met with one. who does not appear 
 changed for the worse.' ( Epist. ad Vultur. Neoc.) And again : 
 ' Some persons,' says lie, ' whom 1 knew formerly innocent, 
 harmless, and without deceit, no sooner have 1 seen joined to 
 that sect' (the Protestants) ' but they begun to talk of wenches. 
 . to play at dice, to leave off prayers, being grown extremely 
 worldly, most impatient, revengeful, vain, like vipers tearing 
 one another.-l speak by experience.' (Ep. ad I'ratres infer. 
 
 Germaniae.) 
 
 " And they (the locusts) had hair as .the hair of u-omen. 
 
 (ver. 8.) In describing the heads of the locusts, from the fore- 
 part or the face, which resembled that of man, St. John pro- 
 ceeds to the back-part, which is found covered with hair like 
 women's hair. This latter allusion, unhappily for the Secta- 
 ries, betrays too plainly their sensual disposition towards that 
 sex, their shameful doctrine on that score, and the scandalous 
 example of their practice. Luther, in despite of the vow he 
 had solemnly made to God of keeping continency, married, 
 and married a nun, equally bound as himself to that sacred 
 religious promise. But, as St. Jerome says, * it is rare to 
 find a heretic that loves chastity.* Luther's example had 
 indeed been anticipated by Carlostadius, a priest and ring- 
 leader of the Sacramentarians, who had married a little before; 
 and it was followed by most of the heads of the Reformation. 
 Zuinglius, a priest and chief of the sect that bore his name, 
 took a wife. Bucer, a religious man of the order of St. Domi- 
 nick, became Lutheran, left his cloister, and niarried a nun. 
 CEcolampadius, a Brigittin monk, became Zuin<.;!ian, and also 
 married. Cranmer, archbishop of Cantcrbuiy, liad also his 
 wife. Peter Martyr, a canon regular, embraced the doctrine 
 of Calvin, but followed the example of Luther, and married a 
 nun. Ochin, general of the Capuchins, became Lutheran, and 
 also married. Thus the principal leaders in the Refomiation 
 went forth preaching the new Gospel, with two marks upon 
 them, apostacy from faith and open violation of the most 
 sacred vows. The passion of lust, it is also well known, hur- 
 ried Henry VIIL of l!:ngland into a separation from the Ca- 
 tholic Church, and ranked him among the Reformers. 
 
 " A/id their teeth (the teeth of the locusts) were as of I ions ^ 
 (ver. 8.) In the preceding article we had a figure of the in- 
 continency of the Reformers, here we are presented with a 
 symbol of their avarice. It was not sullicient to have named 
 them locusts, and to intimate their ravenous temper by the 
 greediness of those insects: they are here rt presented with 
 teeth of lions, Ye2idy to devour with violence whatever prey 
 they can come at. What is more know n than the truth of 
 this representation } Did not the Protestants, wherever they 
 
 .A 
 
7 
 
 
 31« 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 313 
 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 
 of * Reformation' was only a mask made use of to instil their 
 treacherous doctrine with more ease and subtlety. The mask 
 was soon removed, and their doctrine, when applied to the 
 true criterion, was evidently discovered to be false. It dis- 
 agreed with that which Christ had deposited with his Apostles, 
 and which he charged them to impart to the rest of mankmd ; 
 at the same time assurmg them and their successors that, m 
 order to enable them to execute their commission with fide- 
 Wty, he would himself he icith them to the end of theicorld: 
 (Matt, xxviii. -20.) And that the spirit of truth should abide 
 mth them for eter : (John xiv. 16, 17.) That the new-invented 
 maxims were of bad tendency, the efl'ects soon proved. In- 
 stead of a Reformation, they produced a general licentious- 
 ness. This appeared in the seditions, insurrections, and vio- 
 lences committed on all sides. Complaints were also heard 
 from all quarters, of excessive looseness of manners. The Lu- 
 theran macristrates of several imperial cities in Germany peti- 
 tioned the^ Emperor, Charles V., to reestablish by his autho- 
 rity auricular confession, as a check upon the then prevading 
 libertinism. And indeed it was highly probable, that from 
 the pretended * Christian liberty^ which was then preached, 
 a deluge of vice would have ditVused itself, had not the civil 
 power stept it to stem it. " 
 
 " Erasmus, though no zealous advocate for the Catholics, 
 
 could not help observing the degeneracy of morals brought on 
 
 by the change of religion: * Take a view,* says ho, * of this 
 
 Evangelical people' (the Protestants)—* Perhaps 'tis my mis- 
 
 fortune; but I never vet met with one, who does not appear 
 
 changed for the worse.' (Epist.ad Vultur. Neoc.) And again: 
 
 'Some persons,' says he, * ^Oiom I knew formerly innocent, 
 
 harmless, and without deceit, no sooner have I seen joined to 
 
 that sect' (the Protestants) * but they begun to talk of wenches. 
 
 to play at dice, to leave otV prayers, being grown extremely 
 
 worldly, most impatient, revengeful, vain, like vipers tearing 
 
 one another.— 1 speak by experience.' (Ep. ad Fratres infer. 
 
 Germaniae.) 
 
 " And they (the locusts) had hair as Jhe hair of icomen, 
 
 (ver. 8.) In describing the heads of the locusts, from the fore- 
 part or the face, which resembled that of man, St. John pro- 
 ceeds to the back-part, which is found covered with hair like 
 women s hair. This latter allusion, unhappily for the Secta- 
 ries, betrays too plainly their sensual disposition towards that 
 . sex, their shameful doctrine on that score, and the scandalous 
 example of their practice. Luther, in despite cf the vow he 
 bad solemnly made to God of keeping continency, married, 
 and married a nun, equally bound as himseif to that sacred 
 religious promise. But, as St. Jerome says, * it is rare to 
 find a heretic that loves chastity.' Luther's example had 
 indeed been anticipated by Carlostadius, a priest and ring- 
 leader of the Sacramentarians, who liad married a little before; 
 and it was followed by most of the heads of tiie Reformation. 
 Zuinglius, a priest and chief of the sect that bore his name, 
 took a wife. Bucer, a religious man of the order of St. Domi- 
 nick, became Lutheran, left his cloister, and iiiurrieda nun. 
 CEcoiainp;idius, a Brigittiii monk, became Zuiiu.iian, and also 
 married. Cranmer, arclibishop of Cantcrbuiy, had also his 
 wife. Peter Martyr, a canon legular, embraced the doctrine 
 of Calvin, but followed the example of Luther, and married a 
 nun. Ochin, general of the Capuchins, became Lutheran, and 
 also married. Thus the principal leaders in the Refomiation 
 went forth preaching the new Gospel, with two marks upon 
 them, apostacy from faith and open violation of the most 
 sacred vows. The passion of lust, it is also well knowai, hur- 
 ried Henry VIII. of l^ngland into a separation from the Ca- 
 tholic Church, and ranked him among the Refonners. 
 
 " A/id their teeth (the teeth of the locusts) were as of iio;:s, 
 (ver. 8.) In the preceding article we had a figure of the in- 
 continency of the Reformers, here we are presciiteii with a 
 symbol of their avarice. It was not suilicieiit lo have named 
 them locusts, and to intimate their ravenous ti iiiper by the 
 greediness of those iusects: they are here rv presented with 
 teeth of lions, redidy to devour with violence whatever prey 
 they can come at. What is more kno\\ n than the truth of 
 this representation ? Did not the Protestants, w^herever they 
 
514 
 
 8TR0NG REASOKS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS, 
 
 315 
 
 ■s, 
 V 
 
 t.** 
 
 ■ 'i 
 
 .a- 
 
 ■ ♦ * 
 
 ■ "T -f 
 
 got footing, pillage the churches, seize the church-possess.ons, 
 destroy the monasteries, and appropriate to themselves the re- 
 venues ? Such was the case in Germany, in Holland, in 1< ranee, 
 in Switzerland, in Scotland, as we have seen m relating the 
 Protestant wars in those countries. In England liluwise what 
 a scene of rapine ! Without descending to a detail ot part.- 
 culars, it may be sufilcicnt to say. that in the reign of Henry 
 VIII w.-re suppressed no less. than ()46 monasteries, fiO col- 
 leges 110 hospitals, and of chantries and free chapels 2374, 
 (Beaker's Chron.) ; the lands and revenues of all which were 
 confiscated to the knig. Is not this, to devour with Uon.^' teeth^ 
 The same course of rapine was carried on under E.lward VI. 
 which swept away what remained from the preceding reign. 
 Dr Heylin, in the preface to his History of the Reformation, 
 speaking of this Prince and his reign, says: ' Such was the ra- 
 pacity of the times, and the unfortunateness of his condition, 
 that his minority was abused to many acts of spoil and ra- 
 pine, even to an high degree of sacrilege, to the raising ot some, 
 and the enriching of others, without any manner of improve- 
 ment to his own estate." The hungry courtiers began their 
 sacrilegious rapine, by plundering the images and shrines ot 
 the saints, and seizing upon the ornaments, plate, and jewels 
 of the churches. These spoils not being sunicient to glut 
 their /co«;«e avidity, they invaded the bishoprics, which they 
 stripped of many of their possessions. The detail of all which 
 may be seen in the abovementioned History of Dr. Heylm. 
 
 « And they had (the locusts had) breast-plates as breast-plates 
 of iron (ver. 9.) In the two last articles we saw the spirit of 
 inconti'nency and avarice of the Reformers and their societies ; 
 here we are presented with a picture of their obstinacy, under 
 the figure of iron-breast-plates. Whoever is not joined with 
 the Protestants in their persuasion, knows full well that their 
 obstinacy is incredible in defending their doctrine, that for 
 that purpose they ^e not ashamed to make use of any argu- 
 ments though ever so frivolous, inconsistent or absurd, and to 
 asperse the Catholic Communion with slanders, misrppresen- 
 tations, and calumnies. It also appears, from the account we 
 
 llr.^ e before given of the wars of ths ^leformation, that the 
 Piotostants were always ready to ■..■umtain their new adopted 
 religion at any rate, even with arms, and at iho risk of their 
 lives. In that view the Protcstnnt princes of Genr.r.iv entered 
 into a l.^^.'c oflensive and d ibnsive against the Emperor 
 Charles V., rose up in arms, nor could they be prevailed upon 
 to sit down quiet, till they had established the Reibrmation. 
 Thus they carried hreast-platcs of Iro \ Many other wars suc- 
 ceeded in Germany between the Catiiolics and Protestants. 
 After a similar manner, in other conn tries, where the Refor- 
 mation r^ot footing, its abetters so obstinately supported it by 
 sedition, disturbance, and war, tiiat no peace could be pur- 
 chased from them, till their reli<>;ion was admitted and ratified 
 b> the huvs of the respective kingdoms. Such was the case, 
 not only in Germany, but in Holland, in several provinces of 
 France, in Scotland, ;kc. And I believe every one presumes 
 such vvo'-dd be more or less the case at this day, if any danger 
 threatened the Reformation. 
 
 " And the noise of the: r wlnps (the wings of the locusts) icas 
 as the noise of chariots of many horses running to battle, (ver. 
 0.) Here the Proplict points at the turbulent, murmuring, 
 clamorous disposition of the Reformed, properly expressed by 
 the noise of the wings of the locusts, which was as loud as the 
 noise of chariots of many horses ruainnp: to ivar. Did not that 
 inflammatory spirit of uneasiness, loud murmur, and sedition, 
 appear in all those kingdoms, where the Reformation was re- 
 ceived? How often has the public tranquillity been con- 
 %^ulsed by that baleful poison ? What fatal disturbances have 
 l^een raised, and what troubles have princes sustained to quell 
 Hiem ? Some of the sects are inspired with a relentless hatred 
 to government ; their complaints are clamorous and unceasing, 
 and they brood upon niischief, devising how to destroy superior 
 power, and reduce all mankind to a level.* What intestine" 
 
 * All this is abundantly exemplif'cd in the conduct of the 
 Catholics, and other turbulent spirits, at this very day. 
 
 X 2 
 
 Ji 
 
316 
 
 StRONG REASON'S AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 317 
 
 'V't^ 
 
 munnurs hare been heard, what tumultuous scenes have been 
 seen in England, Scotland, and France ? 
 
 " On another hand, the unhappy effects of this uneasy and 
 ungenerous disposition have been severely felt by those of the 
 Catholic Communion living in Protestant countries. Though 
 all the reformed sects agreed in preaching up * Christian li- 
 berty; the Catholics have seemed to be envied the least share 
 of that invaluable blessing. Without any just provocation, 
 alarming outcries have been often thrown out against them : 
 they have been threatened with the rigour of the laws, and pcr-^ 
 secution even has sometimes been set on foot. We see then that 
 the loud noise of the icings of the locusts, like the loud rumbling 
 noise of chariots of many horses running to battle, very fitly re- 
 presents that restless turbulent spirit, which continued in the 
 reformed societies, and banished peace from governments as 
 well as from the Church of Christ." 
 
 " The Continuation of the History of the Fifth Age. 
 
 '* Apoc: chap. ix. ver. 10. And they (the locusts) had* 
 tails like to scorpions, and there ivere stings in their tails, and 
 their power teas to hurt men five months. And they hadf over 
 them (ver. 11,) a king, the angel of the bottomless pit ; tchose 
 name in Hehreio is Abaddon, and in Greek, ApoUyon ; in Latin, 
 Exterminans, (that is. Destroyer.) 
 
 " Here the locusts are said to have tails, that res^»nble 
 whole scorpions, with stings in them. This allegory describes 
 very emphatically the angry temper of the Protestants, and 
 their implacable enmity to those of the Catholic Communion. 
 Whoever presumes to abridge that • Evangelical liberty,' 
 which is their idol, they immediately reclaim against the 
 attempt, chaff, and threaten, like scorpions, to sting. They 
 still retain a good share of that factious and violent tem- 
 
 * In the Greek text, have. 
 
 t In the Greek, have. 
 
 per, with which they first propagated their religion, and 
 which during this period breaks out on different occasions, to 
 the disturbing of public peace and alarming the Sovereigns, as 
 experience sufficiently shews. On another hand, though the 
 Reformation, as we have seen, was settled and secured,\nd in 
 some kingdoms is the religion of the State ; yet it retains a per- 
 secuting spirit against those of the ancient faith. The Protes- 
 tants shew they are armed with scorpions' stings, with which 
 they angrily threaten, and they have still a power to hurt very 
 sorely. They have, in this latter period, increased the number 
 of inhuman laws made before against the Catholics ; and these 
 laws, perhaps indeed less severe than the former, have been 
 at times more or less put in execution. In the preceding 
 period they were allowed to torment mankind, (ver. 5) : but in 
 the present period it is said, their power is to hurt mankind. 
 The expression of hurting, as it is of a milder import than that 
 of tormenting, indicates an abatement of their first rage, and 
 a more moderate behaviour towards those they repure their 
 enemies. This is a blessing, for which the Catholics offer just 
 tribute of thanks to the Almighty, and acknowledge the hu- 
 manity of those from whose hands the favour immediately 
 comes. But, notwithstanding the moderate and generous dis- 
 position of some, there are always other malevolent individuals, 
 who cannot wholly drop that animosity they imbibed in a 
 misguided education, and will endeavour to force the mao-is- 
 tratcs to the execution of the laws against their fellow-crea* 
 tures. But this disposition of Providence ought to be received 
 hy the sufferers in the view for which it is designed, namely, 
 for quickening and maintaining their zea] ; and it brings with 
 it this comfort, that the suffering of persecution has always 
 been the characteristic of the Church of Christ. If they have 
 persecuted me, they will also persecute you, (John, xv. 20.) 
 
 " We have now seen the Prophetical History of the Refor* 
 niation. The description is full and circumstantial, and takes 
 m the period of 300 years. In the first place was exhibited 
 to us its rise ; then the general character of it ; and thirdly 
 the nature and degree of its power. These accpunts are com^ 
 
318 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIAIf. 
 
 3ig 
 
 m 
 
 
 '„ t 
 
 
 
 prised in the six first verses of the ninth chapter. Then follows 
 the description of the character, temper, and spirit of the chief 
 Reformers and their proselytes, with the successive altemion 
 of their power, as settled by the Almighty hand. Which ac- 
 count is traced out in the verses 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th m an 
 admirable manner bv the progressive description of the locusts 
 from head to tail. This allegorical delineation is drawn with 
 ^uch exquisite art, that it cannot, we believe, be equalled by 
 any thing produced from protane writers. But of this extra- 
 ordinary picture there yet remains to be exhibited the last 
 stroke of the prophetic pencil, which is, And they (the locusts) 
 have over them a A /.o , the an^el of the bottomless pit, whose 
 name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek ApoUyon ; in Latin, 
 Exterminans, (that is, destroyer.) St. John, after giving us the 
 history of the surorising revolution made in the Church by the 
 Reformation, closes it by letting us into the secret ot tlie 
 means, by which it was contrived, was carried on, and is still 
 preserved. He tells us, the locusts or the people ot the Re- 
 formation have over them a king, who is an angel of the bottom- 
 less pit, that IS, an angel of Hell, or a Devil Here then 
 we see the original contriver and director of the whole work. 
 Here we see who has been through the whol'3 progress their 
 prompter, their chief, and their king. But who would envy 
 them such a king ? or who would chuse to be a subject of such 
 a sovereign ? The name of this infernal spirit is even given ; 
 he is called Abaddon, or Exterminator, Abolisher, Destroyer. 
 By this name his character is sufficiently clear. As pride is 
 attributed to Lucifer, and to other fiends arc ascribed special 
 qualities ; so here the evil spirit, who is the king ot the Re- 
 formation, is distinguished by the character of exterminating 
 and destroying. One cannot but lament the misfortune of the 
 yrotestants, in voluntarily admitting over them such a king, 
 and enlisting under his banner. A second misfortune is. they 
 have been too faithful in their allegiance. We have already 
 given a sulficient relation of their violent proceedings m the 
 different countries where the Reformation ^ot entrance. W e 
 ^pecitied some part of the conspiracies, tumults, rebellions, and 
 
 civil ware it gave rise to, and the subversion of states which 
 ensued. Could such scenes be conducted by any other but 
 the king Abaddon, the destroying Angel? 
 
 " With respect to the Church, how many articles of faith, 
 which are reckoned essential to religion, have they not ex* 
 ploded, as may be teen in the Council of Trent ? The holy 
 sacraments also, those channels of divine grace, have they 
 not reduced to two, or rather one, viz. baptism ; the Eucha« 
 fist, in the opinion of many of their sect, containing nothing 
 moie than mere bread and wine ? Even baptism itself is 
 atiirmed by some of them to be only a ceremony, not neces- 
 sary for salvation. The rites and ceremonies, which form the 
 exterior part of religion, and which greatly contribute to 
 raise its dignity and by impressing an awful respect on the 
 minds of the faithful increase their devotion, the Reformation 
 has almost entirely abolished. They have exterminated the 
 spiritual jurisdiction of the See of Rome, acknowledged in all 
 foregoing ages, and they have chosen Abaddon fox their gc- 
 vernor and king, instead of Christ's vicegerent. In the same 
 manner they have exploded, part of the canonical Scriptures, 
 Church-traditions, councils, fathers, the ecclesiastical canons 
 and discipline. They have abrogated the most noble and 
 august sacrifice which Christ bequeathed to Jiis Church, and 
 thus have reduced the Christian community to a worse condi- 
 tion, than either the mosaic or patriarchal state, by leaving 
 it without any sacrifice at all. They have also abrogated 
 most of the exercises of mortification, so much recommended 
 by our Saviour and practised by the Apostles and all anti- 
 quity ; such as fasting, abstinence, continency, penance, self- 
 denial, &c. They have exterminated confession, that great 
 hridle to licentiousness and vice. They have condemned re» 
 ligious vows ofpoveity, chastity, and obedience; that path 
 of Christian perfecuon, which has been trodden by thousands, 
 and entitled so many of them to the beatitude of saints. 
 They have destroyed monasteries, pulled down churches, 
 trampled under foot the images of Jesus Christ, of his holy 
 mother and his saints. They have robbed tlie faithful gf that 
 
 
350 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAI3IS. 
 
 321 
 
 € 
 
 I 
 
 
 *-l^, 
 
 salutary and comfortable help they had always found in the 
 invocation of the saints, by whose intercession, through the 
 merits of Christ, such plentiful oraces and blessings have de- 
 rived to men. They even dared to profane with sacrilegious 
 hands the sacred remains of the Martyrs and confessors of 
 God. In many places they forcibly took the sauits* bodies 
 from the repositories where they were kept, burned them, 
 and scattered their aslies abroad. Wliat can be a more atro- 
 cious indignity ? Are parricides or the most tlagitious vil- 
 lains ever worse treated ? Thus, among other instances, in 
 the year lo()2 the Calvinists broke open the shrine of St. 
 Francis of Paula, at Piessis-les-tours, and finding his body 
 uncorrupted fifty-live years after his death, they dragged it 
 about tiie streets, and burnt it in a fire which they had made 
 with the wood of a great crucifix : as Billet and other histo- 
 rians relate. 
 
 «* Thus at Lyons in the same year, the Calvinists seized 
 upon the shrine of St. Bonaventure, stripped it of its riches, 
 burnt his relics in the market-place, and threw his ashes into 
 the river Snone, as is related by the learned Possevinus, who 
 was then in that city. The bodies also of St. Irenicus, St. 
 Hilary, and St. Martin, as Surius asserts, were treated in the 
 same ignominious manner. Such also was the treatment of- 
 fered to the remains of St. Thomas, arch-bishop of Canter- 
 buiy, whose rich shrine, according to the words of Stowe in 
 his 'annals, 'was taken to the King's use, and the bones of 
 St. Thomas, by command of Lord Cromwell, were burnt to 
 ashes, in September, 1538, of Henry VTH the thirtieth.' 
 Thus the Reformation waged war against the dead and 
 against the elect of God ; as if sanctity had become infamous, 
 and to have spilt their blood in the cause of Christ was now 
 to be judged criminal. 
 
 ** Thus the faets evince the universal devastation carried 
 throu<:h the Christian Church by the reformed religion. 
 And tlms it appears who was the founder of that new reli- 
 gion, its architect, its AeV/.ir, namely, the an^cl of the hot- 
 tomless pit, Abaddoff, the exterminator. One may however 
 
 further observe that, in order to manifest more clearly the 
 accomplishment of this prophecy about the locusts. Almighty 
 God seems to have ordained that the chiefs of the Reformation 
 should themselves give testimony of it. Luther, the primary 
 head, avowed and proclaimed to the world, that he had had a 
 conference with the Devil about some articles of the religion 
 he was then devising, that he had been convinced by the 
 arguments of that spirit of falsehood, and directed in the 
 determinations he should take. Thus he opens that famous 
 colloquy. ' Some time since,' says Luther, * I awaked from 
 my sleep, and behold the Devil (who had made it his business 
 to occasion me many sorrowful and restless nights) began a 
 di-vu.e \titu me m my mind. Dost thou hear, said he, most 
 excellent, doctor ? Dost thou not know, that thou hast said 
 private iiiasses almost every day for fifteen years together? 
 and what, if in those masses thou hast practised downright 
 iJolatiy, vS:c. ?' (Lib. dc Missa privata et Sacerdotum Unc- 
 tioue). Lutiicr answeis the Devil in defending what he had 
 done. The fiend pretends to prove his charge, by telling 
 Luther, he must have been guilty of idolatry, because he ha4 
 no true faith at that time, and consequently no ordination. 
 By which it seems that the Devii's attempt was to persuade 
 the Reformer, that there was neither true faith nor true ordi- 
 nation in the Catholic Church at that time, when he professed 
 himself a member of it and said mass. As if the Church of 
 God had been extinguished, notwithstanding the solemn promise 
 of Christ that the gates of hell should never prevail against it. 
 The spirit of darkness urges likewise the unlawfulness of say- 
 ing a mass, in which no one communicates but the priest: 
 as if Christ had given any precept on this head. But without 
 taking the trouble to confute minutely the Devirs argument, I 
 presume every si'P.sible man will allow that Luther, instead 
 of giving any assent to them, sliould have rejected them with 
 contempt, as so !v)any certain impostures, and charged his 
 antagonist with being the known enemy of truth. He should 
 have rebuked him at once with the words of our Saviour: 
 * Away with thee, Satan,' (Malt. iv. 10). ' Thou wast a mur- 
 
322 
 
 STilONa REASONS AGAINST 
 
 
 
 ■I 
 
 
 
 derer from the beginning, and thou stood not in tho truth ; 
 because truth is not in thee : when thou speakest a he, tliou 
 weakest from thy own, for thou art a liar, and the father of 
 lies.' (John, viii. 44). But the Reformer, instead of foiling 
 his adversary with tliese arms, gives him up the victory, 
 allows his own conviction, and triumphs in the imaginary 
 discovery ; concluding thus : by these means * We are freed 
 from private masses, and from the ordination of bishops — 
 Let them consider how they can defend their Church.' And 
 from that time he desisted from saying mass. 
 
 ** Zuinglius in like manner, while he was in great perplexity 
 and deep meditation how to explode the real presence in the 
 Eucharist, was furnished with an argument for that purpose 
 by a nocturnal * Monitor, whether black or white he did not 
 remember ;' as he relates himself, (Lib. de subsidio Eucliar.) 
 
 " The wiiole explication here given of the allegory of the 
 locusts, we presume, appears so consonant to the History of 
 the Relbrmation, that the propriety of it will not be denied. 
 Nor ought the author to be censured for presumption, since 
 he is not the first who has thus applied that prophecy. La 
 Chetardie did so, about the end of the last century. Bellar- 
 mine did the same tov/ards the end of tlie century before, and 
 others had preceded him, as he testifies. In general it appears 
 from the writers of that period, that no sooner did the nume- 
 rous tribe of Reformed Religionists spring forth, than the 
 Catholics, as if by a sudden inspiration, judged they saw the 
 locusts of the Apocalyse. 
 
 ** The short sketcht s we have given from the general 
 History of the Reformation for the illustration of the text, we 
 hope will be deemed suQicient, especially considering the 
 limits of this work. It would be endless to attempt a narra- 
 tive of all the dilferent parties, into which the Reformation has 
 been spht. They are not even to be enumerated. But one 
 may in general observe, that its case is the same with that of 
 all the heresies in preceding ages. Variation was always their 
 character, Thus it was with the Arians, with the Pelagians, 
 with the Eutychians, &c, They never remained steady to 
 
 ^ 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 323 
 
 their first plan of re:i.i:ion, nor could they ke^p their proselytes 
 within the boundaries they first prescribed to them. 
 
 Not content with what they pretended to have reformed, 
 they would still go on reforming, without knowing where to 
 stop. But indeed what wonderthat people are bewildered, when 
 they have no sure guide to direct them ! The Church, which 
 Christ had commanded every body to /^ ear*, they had left, and 
 thus become solitary, they wandered in unknown paths into 
 which the spirit of seduction led them. Faith is one, but 
 error easily multiplies, having the Devil for its parent, who 
 hates trut 1 and concord. Abaddon, wdio contrived and con- 
 ducted the Reformation, was also the author of its divisions and 
 contradictions, and the /ying spirit in the mouth of its pro- 
 phets, (III Kings, xxii. 22.) He still continues to actuate it 
 in tiie same manner ; and hence we see rise up every day new 
 teachers, who, dissatisiied with what they find established, 
 are ever proposing amendments and innovations. What 
 idea can we form of a religion or an institution composed of 
 such a number of dissonant parts, and, cameleon like, vary- 
 ing its colours every day ? What idea, I say, can we form 
 of it, but of a monster, such as St. John describes it, under 
 the type of a frightful deformed locust, w hich has a man's 
 face, a woman's hair, a lion's teeth, an iron-breast, . and a 
 scorpion for its tail.? In fine, the licence of judging for 
 himself being the claim of every member of the new religion, 
 what could it produce, but what experience shews to have 
 really happened, a defection from all religion ? Some, uneasy 
 under any restraint, declare themselves indifferent to every 
 form of doctrine and worship, and are styled * Latitudina- 
 rians ;' others, conte;iting themselves with the simpic belief 
 of a God, renounce ail divine Revelation, and are denomi-^ 
 nated * Deists' or * Free-thinkers ;' and some are even said 
 to be sunk into mere Materialism, that is, to believe no fu* 
 ture state at all. * They who have made bold with one 
 article of faith,' said St. Vincent of Lerins in the fifth cen- 
 
 Matt. xviii. 17, and Luke, x. IG. 
 
354 
 
 STRONG REASON.^ AOAlS^T 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 S2^ 
 
 #» 
 t* 
 
 . 1 
 
 ■r 
 
 'f.l 
 
 If • 
 J 
 
 
 tury, * will proceed on to others : and what will be the con- 
 sequence of this reforming of religion, but o.ily that these re- 
 liners will never have done, till th.cy have reformed it quite 
 away ?' (Common, c. 29). 
 
 " How different is the government and proceedini^ of the 
 Catholic Church! Foun.led on the Rock which is Ciiilst, and 
 governed by him according to his promise, she is always 
 uniform and unanimous in her doctrine. Htrfaitfi is ahcoys 
 the same. She received it from her divine founder, and she 
 preserves the sacred depositum invioIaUe. Nojarrini: opinion.'*, 
 no innovations are allowed on that head. When a dogmati- 
 cal point is to be determined, she speaks but oner, and her 
 decree is irrevocable. The first general Council of Nice de- 
 clared her laith against the Arians; the Council of Constan- 
 tinople against the Macedonians; the Council of Ephesus 
 against the Ncstorians; that of Chalcedon against the Euty- 
 chians: the second of Nice against the Iconoclasts; and so 
 throu-h the whole period of the Christian era. Tiicse solemn 
 determinations l;ave remaikied unalterable, and will ever be so. 
 Pursuing invariably the same course, she assembled in a 
 general Council at Trent in 154.3, where having examined 
 the principal articles of the new reformed doctrine, she pro- 
 nounced them heretical, and condemned them as such : and 
 this decision will statd an tinpcrishablc monument of the true 
 faith against the Protestant religion, to the end of the world.* 
 
 * After the above paragraph, the followinsj remarks have 
 been added to the former editions by the Roman Catholic 
 professois of the college at Mnynooth, (as I suppose,) be- 
 tause the new edition (from which I have taken all the pre- 
 ceding extracts) was printed by their bookseller. 
 
 ** Let us take notice that the ans^el of the bottomless pit, 
 who was the author of the Reformation^ is by our Prophet 
 named in Hebrew, Abaddon, an<l in Greek Apollyon. Now, 
 though the Greek word Apollyon means the same as the 
 Hebrew word Abaddon, viz. destroyer, nevertheless, from the 
 extraordinary conciseness used throughout the whole Apoca.- 
 iypse, one mav certainly conclude, that St. John means 
 something particular in giving the name of that hellish liend 
 
 ** Ver. 12. One wo is past. The period of three hundred 
 years assigned to the power of the locusts, being expired. 
 
 m two languages. Let us now observe, that the Hebrew 
 lan.cruage preceded the Greek, That liend therefore acted his 
 part hi^t, under his name Abaddon, in setting up the Reformat 
 tion. Let us now take a view of the second of his mischievous 
 operations, under the name of Apollyon, or destrover To 
 see this, we need only cast our eyes on what has lately hap- 
 pened in several countries, as in Germanv, and espcciallv in 
 prance, wlj^re Apollyon has raised such a s[)irit of licentioiis 
 liberty, wild independence, and introduced such a dec?v of 
 religion, that immense evils have followed. What excesses' 
 what extravagancies have thence originated! What blas- 
 phemies against the Almighty ! What contempt of his wor- 
 ship! both divine and human laws trampled under foot ^ 
 What Luciterian pride and arrogance in rebelling against their 
 Creator and their God, and even denyiiiir his existence 
 What impious and inhuman proceedings against his vice- 
 gerent! Combinations and conspiracies against soverei^], 
 princes and governments ! Persecutions a-ainst the ministers 
 ot religion! Cruelty in despoiling their fellow-creatures of 
 their property, and spilling their blood by murders and mas- 
 sacres ! '' 
 
 " These are the horrible devastations operated by that in- 
 ternal fiend under his character of Apollyon, destrover, which 
 make up the second part of his ageiuy. 'in the primitive ages 
 ot Christianity, Satan upheld idolatry, and opposed with all hi«« 
 might the establishment of the Chri^stian religion. He raised 
 cruel persecutions against the Christian proselytes : but findino- 
 Hmselt foiled and defeated in all his efibrts, he then turned his 
 hellish malice another way, and set to work to divide i]\G Chris- 
 tiaiis among themselves, to suscitate intestine quarrels here- 
 sies, tiames ot mutual hatred, and excitincx them to persecute 
 one another uith furious violence. In a similar manner that 
 ^?p^l?\ ^"^ ^^^y^^^ ^^''io"i ►'^atan has employed as his aoent in 
 this fifth period of the Christian Church, in his character of 
 Abaddon, effected his i\vsi destructive work of the Reformation. 
 When stopped, and not allowed to make further proo-ress in 
 that pursuit, he then, in the latter part of his a^^eiuy has 
 machinated and contrived to throw division among the' Ca- 
 tholics themselves in different countries, particularlv in that 
 ancient and once flourishing Catholic kinirdom of 'France- 
 and It IS well known throughout the world, v^ hat pernicious 
 ettects have been the consequence/' 
 
 W: 
 

 A 
 >♦ 
 
 ;| 
 
 It 
 
 
 I'i- 
 
 32(J STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 St. John then adds : one wo is past. Before the angel sounded 
 the fifth trumpet, three woes were pronounced to follow 
 the sounding of the three last trumpets, namely, fifth, sixth, 
 and seventh. And now the Prophet tells us that the first 
 of these woes, which was announced by the fifth trumpet, 
 is past. This woe therefore is the calamity occasioned by the 
 swarm of locusts. I leave it to the reader to determine, 
 whether the breaches and desolation made in the Church of 
 Christ, as we have seen, by the Reformation, be not truly a dis- 
 mal woe, and worse than any that has happened in the foregoing 
 
 ages. 
 
 " When one reflects that, of the three hundred years 
 allowed to the reign of the locusts, there remain only fifty or 
 fifty-five to nm*, one cannot but wish with an eanust heart, 
 that the people represented by those insects would enter into a 
 serious consideration of that circumstance. What a happiness I 
 if, during this short remaining interval, some part of them at 
 least would submit to see their errors, and the great mischief 
 that has been done to the Church by their revolt against it. 
 It is full time to lay down all animosity against their ancient 
 mother, think of a reconciliation, and ask to be received agam 
 into her bosom. She is an indulgent parent, and her arms are 
 always open, even to her rebellious children, when they come 
 in tears to implore her forgiveness. They should be sensible 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 327 
 
 • In the new edition published in Dublin, the RonHsh 
 editors of Mayuooth take care to observe, in a note, that 
 •'this work was first printed in the year nil. m pvder to 
 draw our attention to this extraordinary prophecy, (founded, 
 as they would have us suppose, on the intalhble word ot God,) 
 that Protestants have now no more than mne, or. at the ut- 
 most, foi^rteen years, to maintain their usurped authority, 
 and heretical religion ; and that all ot them, who do not, 
 before the expiration of that period, renounce their errors 
 and become membei-s of « the holy Catholic Church, have 
 nothing" to look for but fiery indignation, which shall devour 
 God's adversaries." I trust in God, however, that his pre- 
 tended Vicar upon the earth will be found a " false prophet 
 in his prediction, as I am persuaded he is in many ot his 
 doctrints. 
 
 m 
 
 that Christ is not only the protector of his beloved spouse the 
 Church, but also the avenger of the injuries done to her. This 
 pjwer he has fre-juently exerted. The four preceding ages 
 lurnish us with the most evident proofs of it, under the respec- 
 tive four vials of the wrath of GoJ. She was revenged in the 
 punishment of her persecutors, the Roman Emperors, in the 
 first age. The Arians, who impugned her faith and harassed 
 her cruelly in the second age, felt also the avenging hand of 
 the Son of God whom with his Church they had blasphemed : 
 after sore calamities, they were doomed to sink into annihi. 
 lation. The third age exhibited to us a most conspicuous 
 exertion of the two-edged sword of Christ, in the destruction 
 of the cruel idolatrous Romans, for their having spilt the 
 blood of h,s and his spouse's children. The fourth age was 
 distinguished by the punishment of the Greeks, for their re- 
 bellion against the same Church, and the world still sees 
 them groaning under slavery for their inflexil,le obstinacy. 
 Such having been the conduct of the supreme Guardian of his 
 Church through the course of all the Christian ages, is it not 
 an object of consideration highly interesting to ^he Protes- 
 jnts lest some such disaster should also be their fate > 
 The Saviour of mankind waits with patience for the return of 
 his strayed sheep, but their obstinacy at last forces his hand 
 ostnke Unhappy children of the Reformation! refuse not 
 o hear the wholesome advice of the Prophet Isaiah : Seek ye 
 the Lord, while he may be found: cull upon him, while he is 
 "ear, (ly. 6) Hear the voice of God speaking to Israel 
 and make the-application: neturn,0 virgin of Israel, rctur'a 
 
 ertZni' '"'Z' "''■""• -^"'''••''•' '^"^ ^S-^-- Be con. 
 'crtd^O houfe of Israel J and do penance for all your in;. 
 
 iuu.es: and iniquity shall „ot be your ruin. Vast array 
 
 from you all your transgressions, by which you have transgressed, 
 
 and make to yoursehes a new heart, and a new spiHt: «J 
 
 t t"". """'.''"'' ''''"' '^'-- ^"'■'^ «"'^.' '-turn ye, and 
 l^ : {Ezech. xvin. 30, 31. 3--'). But if, deaf to all admo- 
 nitions, they continue hardened in tlieir own ways what 
 
 .»-- 
 
328 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 
 
 remains to be done but to lament their misfortune, and in 
 bitterness of soul turn our eyes from the pourmg out ot 
 the following vial ? 
 
 " The pouring out of the fifth Vial of the Wrath of God. 
 " Apoc. chap. xvi. 10. And the fifth angel, says St. John, 
 poured out his vial upon the seat* of the beast: and his king. 
 dom became dark, and they gnawed their tongues for patn.- 
 Ver. 11. And they blasphemed the God of heaven, because of 
 their pains and wounds, and did not penance for their works. 
 
 « Here the angel pours out the fifth vial of the wrath of 
 God on the seat of the beast, or rather, according to the Greek 
 text, on the throne of the beast. We have obserN-ed, in the 
 prelude to the vials, that the general term beast has a 
 double meaning, signifying idolatry or heresy, accordmgly 
 as either, like to a wild beast, makes its ravages m the 
 Church. In the first and third ages it denoted idolatiy, 
 the subject of the history of those two ages. Here it is the 
 image of heresy, the heresy of the Reformation, the charac- 
 teris'tic of the lifth age. Upon the throne therefore of this 
 beast the vial is poured out, that is, upon the kings and 
 governors of the Protestant states, as they are the persons 
 that sit, vested with power, upon the thrones of those here- 
 tical kingdoms. They, however, are themselves subordinate 
 to their chief Abaddon, who, as was specified in the text of 
 the trumpet, commands over all, and sits upon the throne as 
 king paramount. The Protestant stales become, of course, 
 involved with their princes in the calamities poured out from 
 the vial, as we shall see presently. 
 
 " But furthermore we may obsei-ve that, besides the single 
 and general appellation of beast used here to express heresy, 
 the Prophet exhibits to us, in the trumpet of this age, a par- 
 ticular beast, by which he represents and describes the heresy 
 of the Reformation, namely, a locust monster, which is partly 
 locust, partly human, partly leonine, and partly scorpionic. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 329 
 
 * In the Greek, the throne. 
 
 Besides the obvious propriety of the above explication of 
 the v.a! a further argument may be adduced m couiirmation 
 of .t. Though tiie different prophecies of the Apocalypse 
 aremvolved m obscurity, yet one may observe the .nspu^d 
 wnter generally throws in some glimpses of light to ^uide 
 the sohc^itous inquirer. Thus may be remarked a lixed^con- 
 nection between the trumpets of the different ages and the 
 respective vials, of which we have already taken some notice. 
 Th.s consists m the use of the same expression m the trumpet 
 and v.al of the same age ; which naturally leads us to the 
 dis.ngu.sh.ng of the object on which the vial is pou,ed. 
 This object .f not precisely the same as mentioned in the 
 trumpet .t has at least a di.ect relation to it. In general, the 
 m has for object the guil.y part, which is to be punished, 
 mrd which IS always pointed out in the trumpet. Example* 
 will elucidate the present observation. In the first trumpet 
 . .s said, that hail and fire, mixed with blood, were cast upoa 
 the earth In like manner the first vial was poured out upon 
 tne earth. The same term, the earth, occuring in both, indi- 
 cates that, as the trumpet described the persecutions exercised 
 by the Roman emperors and magist.^tes on the Christian 
 part of he earth ; so these emperors and magistrate., who are 
 he guilty part of Me earth, and plainly alluded to in the 
 trumpet, are the object of punish.nent on which the vial is 
 poured. After the same manner, at the soundhrg of the 
 second trumpet a great fierj^ mountain was cast into the sea: 
 and the second vial is also poured out upon the sea. From 
 whence one may collect that, as Arianism. signilied by the 
 "ery mountain, infected a third part of the Christian sea ,- so 
 upon the Anans, who are there exhibited as the guilty part of 
 the sea the vial is poured. Again, the third trumpet an- 
 nounced a great star, burning like a torch, falling upon the • 
 rivers and fountains of waters. Fn like manner th« t'.ird vial 
 's poured upon the rivers and fountains of xcatcrr. The 
 trumpet here describes the desolation carried by the Barb->- 
 nans through the guilty heathen Roman empire : the^efo-e 
 
 M ' 
 
330 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAlNbT 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 331 
 
 
 n 
 
 'i 
 
 (In 
 
 • •= ih^ viil noured. Lastlv, at the souii.l- 
 on this same empnc .s the ml P^^J^^- : ^^j ^he fourth 
 
 l„g of the fourth trumpet the .«« ^vas .uutteu 
 vial was also poured out upon the .«». /^'^^^ °^,^; , 
 
 thCmh trumpet and ua. ^^^^'.J, ,„,,„„,,,, ,,, 
 
 i:rn:r.i"x:r'T.;:^Lr. poured out up^^ 
 
 I.eo/.^e....^audh•.a...^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 
 side then wc have the A.,? «V ; Heure appears the 
 
 ^■e have the tl.ronc and the Lu„Jo,n "«'" J ^^^ 
 connection between the iifth trumpet and ^^^h -a " 
 v.al therefore is poured out upon the pruK-es and states 
 locust-kingdom. j^^^^„ E„. 
 
 » In fine, we ^^ '" ^ J ;^\. ^^.^^ , and the first vial 
 perors persec^mg the ^hn t .e^„^^^ ^^^^^^ ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^. 
 
 TrLrrbem^ a^^^^^^^ the Church; and the second vial 
 Aruns reDeum„ „ trumpet wc saw the 
 
 was poured upon them. In tiie k 
 
 Roman empire declining on account ot its idolatiy 
 fi; to Oinstianity ; and the third vial was poured up<m 
 TeKtinguish it. In the fourth trumpet we saw th 
 u J e Greeks against the Church -. and the fourth v.al 
 :::^:ed i^u^ tl.: nfth t^mpet we see the Protestants 
 
 roltig Igainst the Church ; upon whom then must the fifth 
 
 '''»Tte vial being poured upon the throne of the beast, .^ 
 flows do:n from thence over his whole l-"^^-./'- ^^ 
 of The Reformation. For his kingdom became dark and tc 
 ol tne iveioii respect to the nature 
 
 snawed their tongues for pam. But w ith respec 
 S this punishment, we shall be entirely s.ent. and leave 
 Z be disclosed by the event. We shall only remark that to 
 to oe uiB^i J • „f tu^ t<>vt the scourKC seems to 
 
 judge from the expression of the text, tue sco g 
 
 beLvere.and we are extremely sorry .t will be so lU 
 
 ceived : And they blasphemed the God of heaven, because of 
 their pa.ns and wounds (or sores), and did not penance for their 
 works,*' A J 
 
 Not satisfied with all the virulent invectives here cast so 
 profusely upon the Protestants, this hob, Bishop thou-ht it 
 needful to repeat them iu the conclusion of his History 
 wherein he gives a summary account of the Reformation " ' 
 " The remarkable transactions (says he. p. 454) that cha- 
 nictenze the fifth age. are more generally known" (than 
 those of the preceding ages) "as they stretch fo our own times 
 and touch us more nearly. The Reformation, first set on foot' 
 and propagated by Luther, about the year 1520 or 15'>o is 
 the epoch of tiie present age. the period of wliicli to the 
 pouring out of tlic vial consists of three hundred years of 
 which two hundred and fifty nearly are elapsed.* Many have 
 been the troubles, as we Iiave seen, which the spirit of lioveltv 
 occasioned in .lilferent parts of Christendom. The mischief 
 which the eastern part had sustained by the defection of th J 
 Greeks, was afterwards brought upon the western by the 
 Protestants. The Church of Christ sat bewailing the loss 
 of a great number of her children; and she saw besides with 
 unspeakable grief an en.lless- train of disputes, dissensions 
 and animosities, tiie new heresies had given birth to. Several 
 countries, parti.,ularly Germany, were subjected to threat 
 calamities, the consequence of wars that were kindled by the 
 same fire. Dreadful violences were committed; and sev.'re 
 persecutions followed, in which many suflored death for their 
 adherence to the ancient faith. Indeed what else could be 
 expected, the work being carried on by the angd of erter- 
 ifff nation ? ^ <. j 
 
 " But though the persecutions be less ri-:f«rous in the present 
 
 tmies. yet we cannot but lament to sec li.e many temptations 
 
 Dat l,e ,„ the way. to withdraw the weak, the tepid, the am- 
 
 '"t.ous. and the covetous, from the right ,,;uh, and en<raae 
 
 * In the new edition of this work we are reminded a sp 
 'ond time, that " it was fu^t printed in the year l"""." 
 
 Y ^ 
 
332 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAlUbT 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 335 
 
 
 I 
 
 
 Vi 
 
 4r> 
 
 ir«; 
 
 
 them in an erroneous one that suits better their inchnations. 
 Hence arises a deplorable spectacle to well-thinking persons, 
 of so many that chuse to sacrifice their religion to some 
 worldly advantages that are oflVred them, or to some dis- 
 orderly passions which they can by their apostasy more 
 
 freely gratify. , ,• . i 
 
 " The world was very sensible, that Christ had established 
 his Church, fifteen hundred years before the existence of 
 the Reformation, and that he had communicated his spirit to 
 her, by which he had solemnly promised she should be 
 guided through all ages. I will ask the Fatlur, said Christ 
 and he ivill give you another Faractete, that he ma,) abide with 
 
 you for ever, the spirit oft.uth And he will teach you 
 
 all things, (John, xiv. IG, IT. 20.) The reforming teachers 
 came therefore fifteen hundred years too late, and as they 
 presumed to publish a doctrine contrary to what was taught 
 in the Church, its novelty became its own condemnation. 
 Nevertheless they were resolved to make it pass upon man- 
 kind for divine truth. But to effect this, they should have 
 ascertained it by the intervention of miraculous works, m the 
 same manner as the Apostles had originally established Christi- 
 anity. ' Let them prove,' said Tertullian, speaking of the 
 heretics of his own time. ' let them prove themselves to be 
 
 new Apostles.' 'let them produce their miracles. (1. 
 
 de prsscrip. c. 30.) But the Reformers never were able to 
 procure such a divine sanction. 
 
 " To supply this defect, and- to acquire credit to their new 
 systems, what measures did they take ? They employed an 
 artifice, {we are sorry to say it,) suggested undoubtedly by 
 that angel of the bottomless pit who was their governor and 
 guide, namely, to indulge human nature, by gratifying the 
 passions, by allowing such freedom and latitude in the prac- 
 tice of virtue, as religion had never admitted. They ba- 
 nished at once all those mortifications which distinguished 
 the Christian religion and were ordained by its author as the 
 principal exercises to merit eternal life; such as fasting, 
 abstinence, confession of sins, penance, kc. They pretended 
 
 that all these practices were of no signification, that they 
 were even mtolerable encroachments on Christian liberty, and 
 that faith alone sumce.l for salvation. By these means they 
 let loose the human passions, they enfranchised man from all 
 constraint, and in fine they boasted of having smoothed the 
 way 10 heaven. But, thy silver is turned into dross : thy wine 
 u mngled with water, (Isai. i. 22.): for, our Saviour had 
 said : If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and 
 take np his cross and follow me, (Matt. xvi. 24.) But, instead 
 of the thorny way of self-denial and the cross, they opened a 
 path strewed with roses. What wonder then, if so many 
 took them for their guides, and espoused their maxims > Our 
 Saviour again tells us, that narrow is the gate, and strai<rht is 
 the way. that lead eth to life: and few there are that find it 
 (Matt. vii. 14.) On the coiUmry, the new gospellers inform 
 us, that the way to heaven is broad and easy; and they ofler 
 to conduct us through it with little or no difficulty, because, 
 say they, our Saviour took upon himself the load of hardships,' 
 that should have been our portion, and has sustained them in 
 our stead. But, woe to them that sew cushions under every elbow • 
 and make pillows for the heads of persons of every age to catch 
 souls. (Ezech. xiii. 18.) Thus a survey of the doctrine and 
 practical maxims of the Reformers points out clearly to us the 
 judgment we ought to pass upon their character, accordin<^ 
 to the criterion Christ has given us : A good tree cannot 
 king forth evil fruit, neither can an evil tree bring forth good 
 
 •^'■'"'* Wherefore by their fruits you shall know them 
 
 (Matt. vii. 18, 20.) 
 
 " It would be matter of surprise, that men nursed in the 
 bosom of Christianity could adopt and teach such unchristian 
 doctrines, if we did not see the source of it, which lies in the 
 mahgn influence of their perfidious instructor, Abaddon. He 
 laid open the way to introduce into their minds the most 
 absurd tenets, by separating them first from that Church, the 
 pillar and ground of truth (1 Tim. iii. 15.), which had been 
 constituted the repository of genuine doctrine and morality. 
 We cannot but lament that the perfidious prompter prevailed 
 
 f*i ■ 
 
334 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 335 
 
 I 
 
 I: 
 
 
 i 
 
 upon them to renounce the authority of that infallible guide 
 and to set up their own in its place; and thus he prepared 
 them to receive h.s dictates, and to change the whole system 
 of the Christian faith. But novelty in faith is an inlalhble 
 mark of heresy. The doctrinal articles of Scripture are not 
 to he interpreted by every man's private conceit, which would 
 be infinitely various, but by the tradition derived from the 
 Apostles and perpetuated by their lawful successors For, 
 as St. Vincent of Lerins observes, ' It is the part of true 
 Christian moderation, not to impose one's own opinions upon 
 posterity, but to adhere to what has been transmitted to us by 
 our predecessors.' (comrn. c. 9.) The same is urged very 
 stronc^lybyTertuUian: 'The Apostles.' says he. ' p"bl'»'»ed 
 the faith of the Gentiles, and constituted churches in every 
 city, from which the other churches derived the iirst prm- 
 ciplesof faith and seeds of doctrine; and from which also 
 other churches do daily derive in the same manner, or hey 
 could not possibly be true churches. For tins rea.son then 
 they have the reputation of apostolic, because they are the 
 offsprin<r of apostolic churches. For every kind must cer- 
 
 tail bl traced up to its original.' ' And oa this ac- 
 
 .-ount every other doctrine is to be deeme<l false and spurious, 
 that is not conformable to the truth taught by these apostolic 
 churches.' (de Pr^scrip. c 20. 21.) And again: 'What 
 was first delivered, was the doctrine of our Lord and ot tru h ; 
 what is of later date, can be no other than the tenets of lalse- 
 hood mere fictions. And this observation will stand firm 
 and 'immoveable against all novel heresies, which labour 
 under the consciousness of not having this antiquity to plead 
 in their defence.' (ibid. c. 31.) 
 
 "But the licentious spirit of forming new tenets ot 
 faith and new rules of life, in this fifth age, not only invaded 
 and set aside the general authority of the Church of Christ, 
 but in particular bent its virulence and rancour against the 
 Church of Rome. The reason was plain : because the special 
 province of that Church is, to oppose all innovations in faith, 
 and to suppress, as far as possble; the tares that spring up 
 
 among the good corn. Such all antiquity had acknowledged 
 to be the charge <ommitted to that Church. To that 
 Church therefore the Reformers owed respect and obe- 
 dience; to that Church, 'the greatest.' as St. Irena^us 
 speaks • the most ancient and known to all, founded at 
 Home by the two most glorious Apostles Peter and Paul 
 which retains the tradition it received from them, and which 
 .8 derived through a succession of bishops down to us 
 Shewing which we confound all who, any way out of self- 
 conceit, love of applause, blindness or false persuasions, em- 
 brace what ought not to be taught. For to this Church (of 
 Rome), on account of its more chief presidentship, it is ne- 
 cessary that every Church, that is, the faithful every where 
 address themselves,' (lib. 3. contra HiBres.). How happy 
 might it have been for the Reformers of these late times if 
 upon cool reflection they had applied to themselves what St 
 Optatus m the fouitii century spoke to the Donatist Heretics ■ 
 ' You cannot deny,' said he, • that you know the episcopal 
 chair was fiist given to Peter in the city of Rome, in which 
 first sat the head of the Apostles, Peter; which chair was 
 one, that all others might preserve unity by the union they 
 had with it. and lest the other Apostles should erect and 
 defend chairs to themselves : so that now he is a schismatic 
 and an oflender. who sets up another against the only chair * 
 (lib. 2.) •' 
 
 " In regard to the vial of this age. we shall add nothing 
 more, to what has been said of it in its place, than the follow! 
 ing admonition. If the true servants of God, faithful mem- 
 bers of the Catholic Church, observe that towards fifty years 
 from the present date, the state of kingdoms and the course 
 of public affairs seem to presage the approaching eftusion of 
 the fifth vial, accordingly as we have intimated, then Go out 
 from her, my people: that you be not partakers of her sins, and 
 that you receive not of her plagues, (Apoc. xviii. 4.) .- fly from 
 the countries of wnith and perdition." 
 
 fl^y 
 
336 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 
 ^': 
 
 hi i 
 hi 
 
 R*! 
 
 After such an audacious attack on the reformed religion, 
 and such a plain developement of the author's opinions res- 
 pecting the certain downfall of the Protestants, which, with 
 all the confidence of an inspired prophet, he declares is just 
 at hand, who can be so infatuated as to entertain the leust 
 doubt of the rancorous and irreconcilable hatred of the Pa- 
 pists towards us, and of their earnest design to destroy us, as 
 « workers together with God," when the predicted time shall 
 come for the accomplishment of his purposes? 
 
 In former times, when they were in fear lest the salutary 
 laws against them (made solely for our oicn diftnce) should be 
 enforced, they were cautious of publishing any thing which 
 might give just cause of oftence. But, as these laws have 
 been gradually relaxed and repealed, their audacity also has 
 gradually and proportionably increased ; so that, of late years, 
 they have not only revived their controversy with us, whi(A 
 had long lain dormant, but have bitterly inveighed against the 
 established faith. Various tracts and books have been dis- 
 seminated, in order to prepossess the public mind against the 
 time when their projects may be ripe for execution. Mean- 
 while, it becomes us to be upon our guard against every at- 
 tempt (however speciously coloured) of a vigilant and insi- 
 dious adversary, whose malignant intentions towards our 
 religion and government will admit of no doubt. 
 
 Let us only consider what influence even the common 
 priests have over the Popish laity, and how much greater still 
 their bishops and archbishops must have, and then we shall 
 not be surprised at the most sanguinary deeds which they may 
 be induced to commit, when encouraged by such a publica- 
 tion, from one qf their highest order, and highest religious 
 character, which has met with such approbation as to pass 
 through four editions in the United Kingdom, and to be 
 translated into different languages abroad, and which, there is 
 every reason to believe, has been sanctioned by the College of 
 Maynooth in Ireland. 
 
 In this last edition, the pul^lic are informed, that when it 
 <« was first presented to the public, it was variously received, 
 
 337 
 
 according to the various temper and disposition of its readers 
 Some did not hesitate to treat it with ridicule, as the pro^ 
 cluction of a w. ak and visionaiy mind : others attacked it with 
 objections of dnfercnt kiu.ls, none of which seem to carry with 
 them very consid.r.ble weight. But the generality formed a 
 very favoumble opinion of it, and read it with equal satisfac- 
 tion and edidcation. They were not a little struck by the new 
 hght, which the author seemed to have thrown on the invs- 
 teries contained, and the judgments denounced, in the pro- 
 phetic book before us. Their attention was particularly 
 excited by his open declaration, that. He apprehended some of 
 the seven scourges there threatened, were hasteninu fast to he 
 inji'ctcd on criminal and unrepentin^ nations;' (that is the 
 nations in wliich Protestantism is established,) - and a pro. 
 phetic nal was soon to be poured out on guilty heads. He cha- 
 ntabJy therefore forewarned his readers, to seek by sincere 
 repentance to avert, if possible, the Impending judgment, ov to 
 be at leaBt themselves prepared ; and not to fail to instruct their 
 children by every religious lesson, to be ready to receive in 
 
 the most Christian manner, the approaching auful chasLc^ 
 me?it. => ^ 
 
 " These salutary admonitions were thought, by those who 
 were personally acquainted witl. the author, to come from 
 hini with singular propriety and authority ; and few seemed 
 better quahtied to penetrate into the secret recesses of the 
 Apocalypse than he was. Born with great natural abilities, 
 which had been carefully improved from his infancy by an 
 ejccellent education ; blessed moreover with a heart formed 
 for piety and virtue, \k dedicated himself, at an early period 
 of hie, to the study and practice of religion. His virtue and 
 learning soon became conspicuous, not only in the line of sa- 
 cred literature, but alike in mathematical and astronomical 
 H.s sacri J and theological literature acquired him the de-^ree 
 of Doctor of Divinity, in the Univemity of Paris, and\is 
 mathema. .cal knowledge, the honour of fellowship of our own 
 ioyal So. iHy and that of Berlin ; and, yet young, he Z 
 iurthermo:. raised to the episcopal dignity' Th s ^c^ 
 
 
338 
 
 STROiiG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 dignity he held upwards of forty years, during which period, 
 he fed his fiock with the bread of life and understandings 
 (Eccles. 15,) and maintained the faith and doctrine committed 
 to his trust, sound and pure. When raised to the episcopal 
 dignity, he then more than ever devoted liimself to ^he study 
 of holy Scripture. With a mind thus improved and enriched 
 with abundant store of knowledge, he ventured to direct his 
 labours and reflections to clear up, in some degree, the dark- 
 est perhaps of the sacred prophecies. He was not deterred 
 from the undertaking, either by the difticulties and obscurity 
 peculiar to the Apocalypse, or by the little success of others 
 who had gone before him on a similar design. His plan ap- 
 pears to have been conceived with great judgment and pene- 
 tration, and it has been executed with equal ability." 
 
 The editor then takes notice, that " although no pains 
 were taken by the author or his friends to circulate his 
 work, it soon found its way into foreign countries, particu- 
 larlv into France and Germanv. A French translation of it 
 was published in 1778, p. 159, &c. by a Benedictine monk, of 
 tlie congregation of St. Mawrus, a congregation so well known 
 by its literary labours. Of this order of religious men, the 
 author was a member in the present English congregation of 
 Benedictines. Soon after, it was translated into Latin by an 
 English Benedictine monk resident at Paris ; into German by 
 L'Abb^Goldhagen, 1785, 3 vols, 8vo. and lately into Italian. 
 W^e may judge in what esteem the original performance was 
 held abroad, by the following extract from the periodical 
 writings of a very judicious and learned author, L*Abb^ Fel- 
 ler, universally known and esteemed in France and Germany 
 for the zeal and success with which he has for many years 
 defended the cause and interest of religion. Dated 1766, 
 Sept. p. 106."— For the benelit of the English reader, it is 
 thus translated : 
 
 ♦* The work of Signior Pastorini is the only good comment 
 which England has produced upon the Apocalypse. The 
 nation has obligations to the author for having contributed to 
 cause to be fors;otten the extravagant notions of James L 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 339 
 
 and the celebi*ated Newton, respecting this divine book. It 
 is a learned and edifying performance. The theological and 
 ecclesiastical matter interspersed throughout it, shed valuable 
 lights upon the most mysterious of the sacred writings. The 
 w onderful prophecies contained in it, being established upon 
 authentic, striking, and public facts, inspire the Christian 
 soul with Christian hope and fortitude, and aftbrd a solemn 
 testimony to the power and veracity of God. What i-emains 
 as yet undisclosed manifests itself already in a sensible man- 
 ner ; and the times tee live in furnish a lively and faithful 
 pictured 
 
 This delineation of his profound learning, of his exemplary 
 moral and religious deportment, and of the favourable recep- 
 tion which his History of the Christian Church met with " in 
 foreign countries," is, doubtless, intended to raise him so 
 high in the estimation of the Catholics, that they may be 
 assured of the speedy completion of the divine vengeance, 
 which is to be inflicted on the Protestants, and which he 
 positively maintains w^as predicted by St. John himself. 
 
 It is very observable, that bigots in religion generally 
 " wrest the Scriptures," in the most unnatural manner, in 
 order to favour their own peculiar system. This is particu- 
 larly the case with Papists ; and their false connnents on most 
 of the sacred pages may easily be confuted. But when they 
 pretend to explain the mysterious passages of prophecy, there, 
 a warm fancy and lively imagination have ample room to 
 exert their powers, and it would be a ditlicult matter indeed 
 to correct the mistakes occasioned thereby : for all that can 
 be oflered, on either side, upon so dark and abstruse a subject^ 
 will still be but mere conjecture. 
 
 This defender of the Catholic faith, therefore, taking advan- 
 tage of that circumstance, has employed the utmost stretch 
 of iat^enuity, in accommodating the sacred text of the Apo- 
 caly [)sc to his views, and has thereby rendered his explanation, 
 HI many places, very plausible to an ignorant and superflcial 
 reatler; insomucli, that I cannot help applying what he has 
 «jaid '>r the Apocalypse (as it stands in Scripture) to his own 
 
340 
 
 STRONG REASOXS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 34 1 
 
 perverted interpretation — " It is drawn with such exquisite 
 art" (or cunning) " tli^t it cannot, I believe, be equalled by any 
 thing produce<i from profane writers." 
 
 With equal justice, also, (only altering a few words,) I may 
 apply to the Romish religion, which dift'ers so widely from 
 that of the Protestants, what he says of Calvinism, which is 
 so contrary to Popery. 
 
 ** The nature of" Popery " being so opposite to the" Pro- 
 testant " religion, it has produced in its" votaries " a ranco- 
 rous aversion to every thinsf beloncrin^ to the latter commu- 
 nion. The consequence of this can be no other, when once 
 they have arms in their hands, but to spread desolation, and 
 exercise cruelties upon those whose religion they hate. And 
 such has been the real fact. It is impossible to read the His- 
 tory of the" Papists, " without being shocked at the disorders 
 and barbarities committed by them," (p. 201) ; so that the shapes 
 of these locusts were like unto horses prepared to battle. 
 
 And are they not now prepared, in like manner ? Most 
 assuredly — and* they are only waiting for the time, when a 
 Protestant Parliament mav be so deluded, as to furnish them 
 with those arms (I mean high posts in the army, navy, and 
 legislature) wherewith they mean to destroy the nation which 
 grants them. 
 
 It is true, this Popish writer, when he wished to shew 
 that Luther, Calvin, and Beza, while propagating their reli- 
 gion, endeavoured to stir up the people against their lawful 
 rulers, (that is, the Romish hierarchy, and the Princes who 
 supported it,) pertinently quotes these words of St. Peter 
 against them, " Be ye subject to every human creature for 
 God's sake, whether it be to the King, as excelling* , or to go- 
 vernors, as sent by him, for the punishment of evil doers, and 
 for the praise of the good, &c." 
 
 * The learned reader is desired to take notice of the trans- 
 lation here given of tTri^ip^^ow, fexcellimrj which, in our Eng* 
 Ush version, is very properly rendereo, supreme ; but this 
 artful sophister was well aware, that if our King, or any other, 
 was allowed to be supreme, this would militate against the 
 
 But, surely, nothing can be dearer from hi&toiy than this, 
 (and it has been proved in some of the preceding pages,) that 
 when the Pope and his satellit-.s have found any princes de- 
 sirous of casting off their yoke, they have not only endea- 
 voured to frighten them with bulls, but (armed with temporal, 
 as well as spiritual power) they have excited subjects to wage 
 war against those princes. 
 
 This Popish author produces Calvin as thus declaring his 
 aversion to kings—" They are in a manner all of them a set of 
 blockheads and brutish men"~and in another place, he says, 
 " Princes forfeit their power, when they oppose God in op- 
 posing the Reformation; and it is better, in such cases, to spit 
 in their faces, than to obey," p. i^a Dr. Walmesley also 
 charges Theodore Beza (whom he calls " our modern Ju- 
 nius Brutus") with saying, " We must obey kin-s for God*s 
 sake, when they obey God ; but otherwise, as the vassal loses 
 his fief or tenure, if he commit felony, so does the King lose 
 ^his right and realm also." Whether these Reformers^'made 
 use of such expressions I cannot determine : but I call 
 upon the most strenuous advocates for the Catholics to say, 
 whether many of their polemical writers have not used much 
 stronger language upon this subject; and whether each of 
 them may not be styled, with greater justice than Beza was, 
 •* a modern Junius Brutus ?" These words, therefore, of 
 " the Right Rev. Dr. Walmesley" are infinitely more appli- 
 cable to the works of several of his brethren, than to those of 
 Beza or Calvin : " In these may be seen a hundred other as- 
 sertions of the same nature, the natural tendency of which 
 can be no other, but to arm subjects against their sovereigns, 
 and to introduce anarchy and confusion into the world." 
 And again, " What can be the purport of such doctrine, but 
 to inspire a contempt for sovereigns, and to encourage the 
 people to cast off their government, under the cloak of reli^ 
 gionr' p. 196. 
 
 fr. 
 
 
 Pope's supremacy, and therefore he put a forced construction 
 
 on the original word. 
 
342 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 TJIE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 343 
 
 With pleasure, indeed, I subscribe to the following tes- 
 timony this Catholic bishop has left behind him — " How dif- 
 ferent is this spirit from that of the first ages of Cliristianity !" 
 The faithful then learned from the Apostles and their succes- 
 801-s no other doctrine, but the doctrine of patience, humility, 
 meekness, obedience to the sovereign powers; and these 
 lessons they invariably adhered to. They said : " Our hopes 
 are not fixed on the present world, and therefore we make no 
 resistance to the rxecuiioner that comes to strike us/* (S. 
 Justin. Apol ad Imper. Anton, pium.) They said: "We 
 adore one only God, but in all other things we cheerfully 
 obey you" (the emperors). (Ibid.) They said again: "We 
 Cliristians pray to Gml, that he may rrant to the emperors a 
 long life, a peaceable reign, safety at home, victorious arms, 
 a faithful senate, virtuous subjects, universal peace, and every 
 thing that a man and emperor can desire." p. 193. 
 
 This is trulv " sound doctrine'* — a " doctrine according to 
 godliness;*.* and if we are to believe this Popish divine, all his 
 predecessors in the Church have acted in this peaceable and 
 lamb-like spirit. " These,** (says he, p. 191,) " during their 
 whole ministry, had before their eyes the charge v/hich Christ 
 gave to his Apostles, Ihhokl I send you as sheep in the midst of 
 wolves, which they all understood as an order to preserve the 
 meekness and gentleness of sheep, whatever wolves or perse- 
 cutors they might meet with. And this rule they invariahhj 
 folloicedr 
 
 But let the history of the present age decide, whether the 
 Romish priests have not entirely forf^otten this charge, and 
 even reversed this rule — whether they have not proved them- 
 selves to be ** wolves or persecutors,** instead of sheep. Have 
 not Fathers Murphi/ and Roach, and many others, appeared 
 in the ranks of Irish rebels, dressed out in their canonical robes, 
 leading their savage and blood-thirsty followei-s to ever)* species 
 of the most horrid barbarity ? Were not several of the Pro- 
 testants, (who had escaped death from the pikes or the guns 
 of these merciless ruQians, but had fallen captives into theiV 
 hands,) " led forth as sheep for the slaughter,** and inhumanly 
 
 butchered? In short, what age has not witnessed an exhi- 
 bition of the same tragical scenes ! 
 
 Let no one, therefore, be imposed upon by specious assu- 
 rances, that the Popisli tcolces are now turned into lambs, 
 whose nature inclines them to suffer patiently, and not to hurt 
 or destroy a single creature, though a supposed or an avowed 
 enei)iy. 
 
 Fraud and imposture have been always characteristical of 
 the Romish Church. As David said of some in his days, so 
 we may say of the Papists : " They put forth their hands 
 against such as be at peace with them— they have broken their 
 covenant. The words of their mouth have been smoother than 
 butter, but icar was in their heart— theJr words have been 
 softer than oil, yet have they been drawn swords— they are 
 bloody and deceitful men.*' Ilieir most solemn engagements 
 have often been violated, and they have treacherously rebelled 
 against those who were desirous of living in peace with them, 
 and who only laid such restraints upon them, as might prevent 
 their seditious designs. Their declarations have been false and 
 hypocritical, then meditating the fatal blow, when most 
 fawning, and deepest in profession of kindness and service, 
 and withal, bloodj/ as deceitful. 
 
 Even " the Venerable and Right Reverend Charles Wal- 
 mesley** here intimates, (contrary to all the records of history,) 
 that the Catholics ha\'e " invariably followed" after peace, 
 and manifested the utmost submission to civil authority. And 
 though he maintained, in one place, subjection to the higher 
 powers, as the bounden duty of Christians, (when he wished to 
 expose the unruly practices of some of the Reformers against 
 the Popish heirarchy, and the emperors who supported it"",) yet 
 the whole tenor of his declamatory and acrimonious censure of 
 the Protestants, and of their religion, is calculated, and intended, 
 to inflame the minds of the Catholics and others against them. 
 Hence I may truly apply to his Catholic breLhreli what he 
 said respecting the Protestants, - Their dispositions" will be 
 " soured and worked up by this inflammatory doctrine of their 
 tninisters to such a degree, that they" will be " ready 4br any 
 
 
 \b' 
 
 M 
 
 ! . 
 
344 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 enterprize of sedition and rebellion — always ready to rise in 
 arms, and equally as good dX fightings as at disputing,*^ — P. 192. 
 And, indeed, this latter charge may be proved by what he de- 
 clares in page 185, " While powerful princes and great armies 
 undertook to propagate the Protestant religion, the Almighty 
 thought fit to interpose, and gave to the Catholic powers suf- 
 ficient strength to oppose the invasion, and has ewir since sup- 
 ported them in such a manner, as to make them a match against 
 their enemies »^ 
 
 Who that attentively reads his notoriously false and sarcas- 
 tical account of the Reformation, will not take up his own 
 words, and say of the Catholic religion, what he said of ours, 
 •' If its maxims warrant such proceedings, can its gospel be the 
 gospel of Christ ? " 
 
 And again, how truly may we retort those other words of 
 his, " Whoever is not joined with the* Catholics " in their 
 persuasion, know^s full well that their obstinacy is incredible 
 in defending their doctrine — that, for that purpose, they are 
 not ashamed to make use of any arguments, though ever so 
 frivolous, inconsistent, 01 absurd ; and to asperse the** Protes- 
 tant " communion with slanders, misrepresentations, ancl ca- 
 lumnies." P. 211. 
 
 Now, while Romish bishops and professors of divinity, in a 
 Protestant country, »thus set up opinions to make converts — 
 while they publish such impudent, abusive, and lying his- 
 tories as this — while they fly in the face of authority, and 
 grossly insult the established religion — then it should be made 
 to appear, that the laic is not dead^ but slecpcth, and that " the 
 magistrate beareth not the sword in vain." 
 
 When past experience, also, evidently testifies, that the Pa- 
 pists seem " resolved to depose kings, ruin kingdoms, and to 
 subvert the fundamental constitutions of all civil states, rather 
 than their desciplines should not be admitted, proceeding upon 
 such schemes of violence, can they wonder, that princes or 
 their ofpcers, in their wrath, sometimes retaliate upon them ? 
 For, violence necessarily gives provocation, which, in its tum» 
 exerts itself." P. IPP. 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS, 
 
 345 
 
 The aspect of the times, at present, certainly authorises us 
 to believe, that the Catholics, republicans, and democrats of 
 every description, are all uniting their cfiorts (as far as they 
 can with safety to their lives) to bring about a revolution, both 
 in Church and State. " Is not the no'se of the wings of" these 
 " locusts, as the noise of chariois of many horses running to 
 battle?" Rev. ix. 9. " Here" (to use the language of the 
 Popish Doctor, in his exposition of this passage) '* the Prophet 
 points at the turbulent, murmuring, clamorous disposition of 
 the" Catholics and others ** properly expressed by the noise 
 of the locusts, which was as loud as the noise of chariots of 
 many horses running to war." Does " not that inflammatory 
 spirit of uneasiness, loud Ynurmur, and sedition, appear in 
 those" Protestant " kingdoms where the" reformed Church is 
 by law established? " How often has the public tranquillity 
 been convulsed by that baleful poison ? What fatal distur- 
 bances have been raised, and what troubles have princes sus- 
 tained? Some of the sects are inspired with a relentless 
 hatred to government — their complaints are clamorous and 
 unceasing ; and they brood upon mischief, devising liow to 
 destfoy superior poicer, and reduce all mankind to a level. 
 What intestine murmurs have been heard, what tumultuous 
 scenes have been seen in England and" Ireland ? 
 
 These disorders are the more to be dreaded, because the 
 Catholics are encouraged by numbers of those who should be 
 among the foremost to repress them. When Protestants 
 themselves (and several of them of high rank and property) 
 are not only favourable to their views, but even violent in sup- 
 port of them, what can we expect but internal commotions 
 and convulsions ? These abettors of Popeiy consider it only 
 in a religious light; and, being either indifierent or disaf- 
 fected towards all religion themselves, they think it absurd in 
 others to contend for any particular faith ; and they suppose 
 they can be contented and easy, whatever religion preponde- 
 rates. But they almost entirely mistake tiie matter; for, the 
 the Catholics are allowed the free exercise of all their religious 
 opinions, and even their idolatrous worship ; nor is there the 
 
346 
 
 flTRONG REASOKS AGAIKST 
 
 most distant infention to curtail their privileges in this res- 
 pect. Some of them, too, I am persuaded, wilfully misre- 
 present the nature of the contest, that, by making the dif- 
 ferent sects of Protestant Dissenters imagine the opposition 
 made to the Catholic claims is principally on the score of re- 
 Ugio7i, they may all unite in defence of them, lest the infringe- 
 ment of their own claims, under the Toleration-act, should be 
 hereafter attempted, and a warm persecution ensue. But the 
 real fact is, that, while the governors in Church and State are 
 as friendly as ever to liberty of conscience, they are fearful of 
 admitting the Catholics to any large share oi political power, 
 lest it should be turned against themselves, being justly ap- 
 prehensive of the dangerous nature of their political principles. 
 It is a mere stratagem for imposing upon the understanding, 
 that religion is the ground of the quarrel which unhappily sub« 
 sists at present. 
 
 Hence, because Mr. Fitzpatrick (" printer and bookseller to 
 the Roman Catholic College of Maynooth") has just published 
 a pamphlet, entitled " A statement of the Penal Laws which 
 aggrieve the Catholics of Ireland, with Commentaries^** and be- 
 cause the Irish crown lawyers judged it to be " a false and 
 seditious libel," and, consequently, summoned him ** to shew 
 cause why a criminal information should not be filed against 
 him," the Catholic board came to the following resolu- 
 tion — " That they do meet on the first and third Saturday of 
 every month, until the first of November next, and that their 
 secretary do write circular letters to all the members, announc- 
 ing their serious apprehensions that a religious persecu- 
 tion is about to recommence in Ireland, apparently sanctioned 
 by the present administration, and inculcating the necessity of 
 frequent deliberation, and constant activity on the part of the 
 Catholic body, in obviating the approaching calamity, and in 
 the firm assertion of their rights, at this fearful and important 
 
 crisis. 
 
 «> 
 
 What hypocritical chicanery is this ! Surely every man, who 
 has only a moderate share of good sense, and who has read 
 the debates in both Houses, must see, that not only the mem- 
 
 THC OATHOLIC CIiAtM*. 
 
 347 
 
 bers at large, but that the very bishops and archbishops of 
 our Church have declared their opinion, in the most unequi- 
 vocal terms, that the Roman Catholics should enjoy the undis- 
 turbed possession of their religious forms and rites. It is, 
 therefore, solely, against their arrogant demand of civil autho'^ 
 rity, that objections are so justly made. But, in order to en- 
 gage the Dissefiters on their side, they have, also, lately drawn, 
 up a Petition, with insidious artifice, not merely for their own 
 Emancipation, but for " "universal freedom" — for '' the re- 
 moval of all disabilities," affecting every class of Protestants, 
 who are unconnected with the Established Church. I trust, 
 however, that the Dissenters have too much sound judgment, 
 and too much real piety, to fall into the snare which is laid 
 for them. A little reflectioh must soon convince them, that 
 if they became instrumental to the establishment of Popery, 
 they themselves would be involved in the same ruin with their 
 Protestant brethren in the Church. Or, if the lives of any of 
 them were spared, they would be constrained to acknowledge, 
 that, compared with the slavery to which they would be re- 
 duced, the toleration now granted them is perfect freedom. 
 Let them also consider, that if any should be rash enough to 
 join the Papists in their aspiring projects, and should fail in the 
 attempt, they would then, probably, have the same penal laws 
 enacted against them, as against the Papists. Alike iji crime, 
 alike in punishment. ** But I am persuaded better things of 
 them, though I thus speak ;" and I should be truly grieved if 
 Protestant Dissenters were ever to be considered in the same 
 light with Papists. 
 
 Indeed, Protestants of every description, laying aside their 
 little differences, should all heartily unite in the common cause 
 against the common enemy ; for. Papists bear a deadly hos- 
 tility to all out of their pale. Surely, then, those who, for 
 conscience sake, continue out of it, instead of affording them 
 the least aid to efi'ect their political designs, should endeavour 
 to counteract them, with all their might ; especially at such a 
 time as this, when our national polity is assailed on every 
 
 Z 2 
 
348 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 •> 
 
 side. Will it not be readily confessed, that this is an age of 
 revolutions, such as were never known, since the foundation 
 of the world? An unusual ferment seems to pervade all 
 countries — insubordination is daily becoming more prevalent — 
 and the populace, carried away with the whimsical idea of natu- 
 ral right, think it but just that they, in their turn, should have 
 the superiority. Kings, nobles, and gentry, must all give way 
 to the majesty of the mob. Nay, (astonishing to tell !) such is 
 the infatuation of the times, that even many men of opulence, 
 civil authority, and good sense in other respects, countenance 
 these licentious notions, by their own unguarded expressions 
 and practices. This has been fully evinced at several meetings 
 of pretended patriots ; but I shall only advert to that lately 
 held in honour of Sir Francis Burdett, who gave this toast as 
 the lirst, " The Regent — and may he bear in mind the declara- 
 tion of the Prince of Wales, that the crown is held in trust for 
 the benefit of the people,'" plainly intimating, that he did not 
 think now in this respect as he did formerly, and that he was- 
 no longer the friend of the people. This was drank with three^ 
 and loud applause ; doubtless, on account of the sentiment an- 
 nexed to the Regent's name. Sir F. Burdett then gave, " The 
 memory of that true patriot, who, for upwards of fifty years, 
 advocated the people's cause — John Home Tooke.*' Thus, the 
 dignity of the people is still the uppermost idea ; and therefore, 
 the memory of Home Tooke was drank with three, being as 
 much entitled to it (to be sure) as the Regent Mr. Sturch 
 then proposed this toast, " Westminster*s pride, and England's 
 hope — Sir Francis Burdett" — which was drank with three 
 times three, and the most unbounded applause; the Baronet 
 being three times more (Reserving than the Prince Regent : and 
 after the acclamations ceased, this tune was played, Britons 
 strike home — which we may fairly presume implied much more 
 than it expressed. And» at last, in order to engage the most 
 abusive licentiousness of the democratic prints against the 
 Ministers of State, ** The liberty of the press" was given, ac- 
 companied with this observation, " It is like the air we breath 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 349 
 
 — if we have it not, we die."* Then followed this sentiment, 
 " Soldiers without barracks/' (alluding to Mr. Perceval's sup- 
 posed intention of having barracks in every great town,) *' and 
 legal means of suppressing riots without military executions." 
 But, what more particularly shews the desire of these true pa^ 
 triots to produce disaffection and revolt among the soldiery, 
 and to gain them over to their ambitious views, the following 
 toast was drank with applause, " The abolition of flogging — 
 may the defenders of the land be relieved from the ignominy 
 of the lash ! " 
 
 Now, if these demagogues think it necessary to support the 
 rights of the people, while, at the same time, their endeavours 
 arc all adapted to overturn the rights of the crown, and the laws 
 of the Constitution, shovXd not the Prince Regent, his royal 
 Brothers, the Bishops and Nobles of the land, and all the loyal 
 part of the House of Commons, strain eveiy nerve -to quell 
 such factious proceedings ? For they will only be increasing, 
 while any prospect remains of what is called Catholic Emanci- 
 pation. 
 
 Each of these two disaflected parties are mutually playing 
 into each other's hands ; and I have no doubt but that the 
 subversion of the State is the centre of their unity. Should 
 the Parliament, therefore, be so rash as to yield to the present 
 demands made upon them by the Roman Catholics, that mo- 
 ment, in my opinion, they seal the death-warrant of the Con- 
 stitution. 
 
 Should any one object that there is no danger now to be ap- 
 prehended from the Catholics, their numbers being compara- 
 tively insignificant, and their power ineffectual, I answer, that 
 the very reverse is the case in Ireland, where they are far more 
 
 * Never, surely, was a more just remark. These troublers 
 of the common peace, accustomed to breathe in infectious 
 air, would certainly die of the spleen and vexation of spirit, 
 if they were not left at full liberty, publicly to spread the 
 venom of their malice, wrath, scurrility and lies: for " they 
 sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is 
 taken away, unless they cause some to fall." Prov. iv. 16. 
 
 ■m 
 
»60 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 351 
 
 numerous than the Protestants, and where their clergy have 
 such influence as can scarcely be conceived ; so that if they 
 can acquire additional power, their attempts will be thereby 
 rendered more formidable. And should success, at any future 
 period, crown their efforts, then their brethren hei-e, aided by 
 such auxiliaries, will be encoui-aged to follow their example ; 
 and if we are foolish enough to increase their strength, our 
 own will be diminished in proportion. 
 
 Again it may be said, that the head of their Church, the 
 Pope, being despoiled of his temporal dominions, and de- 
 graded in the scale of nations, cannot now give any effectual 
 assistance to his votaries. But, though he is divested of all 
 military force, yet, what he has losty our most inveterate and 
 powerful enemy, the French tyrafit, has gained , and as the 
 Pope (who still retains his spiritual jurisdiction in this united 
 kingdom) is Bonaparte's vassal, he may be employed as an 
 instrument to effect the purposes of his master, whenever 
 time may furnish him with a fit opportunity. But, above all, 
 if we are to believe the Catholics themselves, they are looking 
 forward, with exulting hope, to a nearly approaching period, 
 when *' the Lord of hosts, mighty in battle, will undertake 
 and plead their cause, against all his adversaries, and be 
 avenged of them, as it is written. Such honour have all his 
 feaints." They think that " the mouth of the Lord hath 
 spoken it," and, therefore, it shall assuredly come to pass. 
 In correspondence with the inspired apostle St. John, the 
 pastors of their Church have solemnly declared it; and their 
 catechism (by " the most Rev. Dr. Butler") tells them; that 
 *' the Church cannot err in what it teaches" (p. 18.) : there- 
 fwe, they fully rely on the accomplishment of all those things 
 w^herein they have been instructed. 
 
 The conpplexion of the times, also, is such, that they a/e 
 looking for some extraordinary change in their civil and 
 fcclesiastical polity. Hence the last editors of Dr. Walmes- 
 ley's History of the Church, have not failed to inform us, that 
 ** the experience of nearly thirty years, the latter part of which 
 has been so eventful^ convinced him more than ever that he 
 
 had not been deceived in his general view of things. To his 
 intimate acquaintance he was often heard to repeat, in the 
 language of Moses, in his celebrated canticle, Adesse fcstinant 
 t nnpora — the times are fast approaching. 
 
 Still, should it be objected, that it must be a delusive 
 hope, because present appearances at Rome are altogether 
 agrainsi them, then I say, on this supposition, that the more 
 desperate their case seems to be, the more violent will be 
 their struggle to regain their lost dominion. Nay, such is 
 their enthusiast'c superstition, that they will turn to an 
 argument in their favour, what may be advanced as mili- 
 tating strongly ag-ainst them. In many cases, it may be said 
 with truth, that when the ways of divine Providence appear 
 most dark and mysterious, the clouds are suddenly dispersed, 
 light breaks through the shades, and the sun shines forth 
 at last in its full strength. And if they are so bigoted as to 
 believe, that " there is no other true Church besides the holy 
 Catholic Church," and that "Christ has promised the gates 
 of hell should not prevail against it," they will rest assured, 
 even under the most discouraging circumstances, that God, in 
 his own due time, will arise, and cause his insulted and op- 
 pressed Church to triumph over ail the powers of earth and 
 hell which were combined against her. After the longest 
 eclipse, (for the manifestation of his own glory) he will brino" 
 her forth, like the bright luminary in the firmament bursting 
 from under a cloud, only to shine with redoubled lustre ; so 
 that all men shall be constrained to say, " This is the Lord's 
 doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes." 
 
 This, I am convinced, is their sanguine expectation, and that, 
 consequently, they will think it their duty to co-operate with 
 God in his gracious designs towards them. But, let not the 
 Protectants be as sanguine, on the other hand, that they can 
 do us no material injury, and that we may securely trust them 
 with the power tliey want. Keep it in our own hands, and we 
 are safe — part with it, and we may be undone. 
 
 m 
 
36^ 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 SECTION XII. 
 
 Expediency and absolute necessity of continuing the Test-Acts, 
 in their full force. — The Fopery-Code already too much 
 relaxed and infringed. 
 
 What has been offered in the foregoing pages, tending to 
 shew the danger of encouraging Popeiy, will, I hope, be un- 
 derstood, as it was intended, to include a defence of the laws 
 of our country, which have laid the Papists under those 
 restraints and incapacities, of which they are disposed, at this 
 critical period, so ioudjy to complain. 
 
 Our ancestors took their accounts of Popish principles 
 from books which the Church of Rcme had authenticated in 
 form^ and the circumstances attending the treasons and con- 
 spiracies of which so many particular Papists had been con-» 
 victed, afforded sufficient reason to conclude, that their 
 Church patronized their attempts, and applied her principles 
 to the justification of the criminals. With this complicated 
 evitlence before them, it became necessary to guard the Con^ 
 stitution from the effects of the perpetual machinations of 
 these dangerous inmates, by such laws as would be most 
 effectual in depriving them of the power of accomplishing the 
 mischief they never ceased to meditate. 
 
 To enter into a minute detail of the numerous acts in our 
 statute-books against Popery, would be tiresome; I shall 
 therefore content myself with shewing, that, as they were 
 first made upon some remarkable attempts of the Papists 
 against our Establishment, so nothing but fiesli provocations 
 of the same kind has driven the English to the execution of 
 them. They themselves know that, by the laws of some 
 other countries, it is criminal to be a Hrotestant, and that 
 the most peaceable behaviour is no protection; and they 
 know as well, that it has not been the Papists, as such, but 
 omv the provohing, seditious, and turbulent among them, who 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 353 
 
 have found any disturbance from the Emrlish Government. Tliis 
 will appear from a consideration of tiie ibiiowin^; pariicuiurs, 
 as related by Dr. Gibson, when bishop of Lon'k>ii m a saiiill 
 tract, entitled, ** The danger and misrhiefs o. xj.h ..." 
 
 •* In ttie inTancy of the Reformation under Henry uie Ei^^hth, 
 the cTCP.t wo.k was, to extirpate the authority c\ the Pope, 
 and cslsbiisti the supremacy of the Priiivre. Now both these 
 the point under our present consideration i>:pposcs to be 
 settled; which is not, by what means the Papal authority 
 was excluded, but in what way those who adhere to the re- 
 ligion of the Pope, have been trer.^ed in a country wdiere 
 his authority was abolislied. , And it is well known, that the 
 disaffection ot that Pfince to the mam doctrines of Popery, 
 was not so great, as to induce him to any remarkable hard- 
 ships towards those, who would at least be siknt under his 
 own supremacy. 
 
 " His son King EdvJard the Sixth went further, and esta- 
 blished an wiiformity of service and administration of the 
 mcraments throughout the realm* ; but that law only enjoined 
 the minister to use this, and not the mass book ; and the 
 people not to interrupt the minister, or speak against the ser- 
 vice. And when it appeared, by experience, that the 
 missalst, which had been formerly used, were a great obstruc- 
 tion to the uniformity intended, they were only called in 
 to give a more free and easy passage to the established service; 
 without disturbing either priest or people in the private 
 exercise of their religion. 
 
 " Notwithstanding the bloody reign of Queen Mary ; so 
 far was her sucjtssor the glorious Queen Elizabeth ixom the 
 least disposition to cruelty, that she contented herself to re- 
 store the supremacy and the public service? to their former 
 state ; allowing the Papists a share in her counsels; and in a 
 subsequent law against the Pope's authority, exempting 
 peers of the realm from the disabling oath, and frequently 
 
 * ^ and 3 !■ dw. VI. t 3 and 4 Edw. VF. c. 10. 
 
 f Camd. Ann. 1558. 5 Eliz. c. 1. 
 
S54 
 
 8T110NG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 declaring that no subject who would live quietly and peace* 
 ably, should be disturbed on account of religion. 
 
 •* Tis true, the laws* afterwards grew more severe^ but it 
 was because the Papists grew more seditious. To execute 
 hulls of absolution and reconciliation i\om Rome, or to receive 
 absolution and reconciliation in virtue of such bulls, was 
 made high treason. But let the history of the three preceding 
 years explain that law, and determine whether it was owing 
 to the severity of Protestauts or the sedition of Papists, There 
 we find that the Pope had granted authority to Saundersf 
 and others, to absolve all the English who would return 
 to the Church of Rojne, and that they were veiy zealous in 
 the work — That the same Pope J had sent his bull into 
 Ens^land by Morton the priest, to anathematize the Queen, 
 deprive her of the throne, and absolve her subjects from their 
 oaths of obedience — That, in virtue thereof, many of the 
 people were withdrawn from their allegiance, a dangerous 
 rebellion raised, circular letters sent to the Papists to rise 
 and assist in the cause, and the bull itself published in the 
 city, in a very open and insolent manner §. 
 
 ** Ten years after, we find a new enforcement of the law 
 against bulls || ; but it was because the priests had found new 
 devices to evade the former law, and to carry on the work 
 of absolving and reconciling by other ways. We also find 
 penalties for saying and hearing of massH ; but we find in the 
 history of the same time, that great numbers of priests were 
 sent into England and Ireland from the seminaries abroad, 
 under pretence of preaching and administering the sacraments, 
 but really to withdraw the subjects from their obedience to the 
 Queen. The same law lays a penalty upon absenting from 
 church, and, after a year's absence, enjoins the finding of 
 sureties for their behaviour ; which is not to be thought strange 
 er cruel, when the emissaries of the Church of Rome, under 
 5vhose discipline the absenters lived, were the professed 
 
 * 13 Eliz. c. 1. 
 gCamd. Ann. 1570. 
 <^Camd. Ann. 1580, 
 
 fCamd. Ann. 1568. 
 
 J— 15(59 
 II 23 Eliz. c. 1 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 355 
 
 teachers of rebellion, and when a design had been detected 
 between the Spanish King and the Pope, to dethrone the Queen^ 
 and restore Popery * in the kingdom. 
 
 '' The next lawf against Papists command all Jesuits, semi- 
 nary priests, and others, to depart the realm. But turn to the 
 liistory of that time, and there you will find great numbers of 
 priests coming daily into England, who taught that the 
 Queen was no QueenXy and that whatever had been done by 
 her authority since the bull of Pope Pius, was null and void. 
 The same law forbids the sending of children or contribu- 
 tions to the seminaries abroad § ; and so the same historian 
 tells us, of great numbers of children sent over to those 
 seminaries, and received there, on condition that they fi.st 
 made a vow to return, when they were instructed in their 
 learning and dis:-ipline; that .s, m the rankest principles of 
 sedition avd rehtUion, 
 
 " While they were thus diligent in sending over their emis- 
 saries to corrupt the people, it is not to be wondered that the 
 great council [j of the land should countermine their endea- 
 vours, by. obliging all who should be found guilty of cor- 
 rupting, to abjure the realm. And if, in the same year, 
 another law^T was made to banish Papists from court, and 
 confine them to the neighbourhood of their own dwellings ; 
 our histories will explain it*», by shewing, that in the compass 
 of a very few years, several designs had been formed and 
 carried on, to assassinate the Queen. 
 
 " King James Iff began his reign .with a revival of Queen 
 Elizabeth's laws against Popery ; and well he might, when he 
 reflected upon the many wicked designs against the pers \\ 
 and government of his predecessor, and that, upon a prospect 
 of her death, they had, in the most public manner, disputed 
 his title to succeed. 
 
 " Three yeai-s after? J, we find Papists confined, under higher 
 penalties, to their places of abode, and greater rewards pro- 
 
 ♦ Camd. Ann. 1578. f 27 Eliz. c. 2. t Camd. Ann. 1581, 
 
 §--1580 II 35 Eliz. c. 1. 1135 Eliz. c. -2: 
 
 C^md. Ann. 1581-7. ft 1 Jac. c. 4. J J 3 Jac. c. A. 5, 
 
356 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS* 
 
 357 
 
 posed for the discovering of priests, and express declarations 
 required, against the Pope's authority to depose princes and 
 absolve subjects from their obedience, and against dispensing 
 with oaths, and taking them with equivocations and mental 
 reservations. But it is to be remembered, that all this was 
 done upon the discovery of the most hellish and execrable 
 plot that we read of in any age or nation, the gunpowder trea- 
 son ; which, we all know, had been carried on by the priests, 
 upon those very principles , to the point of execution. 
 
 •' To these restraints, there were added, in the reign of 
 King Charles the Second*, the sacramental test, and the exclu- 
 sion of Papists out of the great council of the land. For the 
 occasion of which, I need not appeal to history: I may 
 appeal to the memory of .persons still living, for the counte- 
 nance given in that reign to Popish measures, and the im- 
 patience of the Papists to put them in execution, and the at- 
 tempts to shorten the way for a Popish successor to the 
 throne; who, when he came to the throne, did abundantly 
 justify the wiidom of our legislators, by making the removal 
 of that test one of his first endeavours, for the establishment 
 of Popery. 
 
 •* It may be thought presumption,'* (continues this learned 
 prelate) "in one of our order, and especially before this learned 
 audience*, to intermeddle in the laws and statutes of the 
 realm : but it will be favourably considered, that they are 
 laws which concern relis^ion, and are only cited in an his- 
 torical way — that, by comparing the seditious practices of 
 the Papists, as recorded in our hi^'tories, with the several 
 laws they have occasioned, it may appear, at one view, that 
 the Papists have been the sole authors of their own misfor- 
 tunes — that these restraints, from time to time, were brought 
 upon them hy rebellion, and not (as they pretend) by religion-^ 
 that the English Legislature have proceeded in their restraints 
 gradualhj, as the repeated attempts of the Papists, upon the 
 persons and government of our princes, have rendered them 
 
 * 25 Car II, c. 2. ; SO Car. II. c. 1. 
 
 t Judges, &c. 
 
 neccssary-and, that nothing can extort a sanguinary law 
 trom tlie English temper, but an indispensable regard to 
 their own religion and government." 
 
 Thus it evidently appears, that the penal laws, from time 
 to t^me were rendered necessary, by the turbulent conduct 
 ot the 1 apists; every additional severity being occasioned by 
 the discovery of fresh insurrections against our Constitution. 
 
 Perhaps it may seem strange, in this day. tiiat tlie Papists 
 were, by so many statutes, made subject to the penalties of 
 high treason: but this diliiculty ranishes, when we consider 
 tliat our ancestors knew, by dear-bought experience, that the 
 principles of Papists necessarily lead to treasonable practices 
 against the State; since they own implicit obedience to a 
 foreign head, who claims a power of absolving subjects from 
 their allegiance, and deposing and exconm.unicatmg princes 
 for heresy. 
 
 To this source we must ascribe the many nefarious at- 
 tempts they have made on our excellent JJstablishment, and 
 on the persons of our Sovereigns, since the Reformation; and 
 from this source we must expect ruin to ourselves and our 
 posterity, whenever those who have always had the will, shall 
 nave the power to destroy us. 
 
 The penal laws, however, have been represented as un- 
 reasonable and severe, and that many of the disturbances in 
 Ireland are to be attributed to this circumstance. It may 
 perhaps, be admitted, that some of the evils observable in' 
 that kingdom, have arisen from the operation of the penal 
 laws, which, as Mr, Burke expressed, had, by « a sort of vi- 
 cious perfection," a tendency to degrade and impoverish the 
 people : but at the same time it should be confessed they were 
 manifestly and indispensably necessur,,. Ireland had smarted 
 under a Roman Catholic Parliament, which had, by the ex- 
 ertions of their priests, repealed the Act of Settlement which 
 secured all the Protestant properly ; and the Act of Henry 
 the Eighth, which annexed the Crown to tliat of En-land • 
 and rapine succeeded, which formed one of the foukst^tains 
 m the history of that country.. The ProUstai.ts tlun lollowed 
 
 
S58 
 
 $tRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 tHB CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 with a proportionate vigour, iii order to give themselves a 
 perfect system of security; and who can justly blame them? 
 especially, as the laws were never rigorously executed, but 
 when necessity demanded it. And does that necessity no 
 longer exist, so that we have nothing now to fear from the 
 Papists ; and therefore, that the laws concerning them should 
 be annulled ? So the Papists would have us suppose ; and 
 even some Protestant writers (under a mask at least) have 
 seconded the Papists in pleading for a repeal of them. " But 
 there are two things" (as Archdeacon Blackburne judiciously 
 observes) " which are commonly overlooked by those who 
 frame arguments for such repeal. 
 
 •« 1. They who made these laws had an opportunity of con- 
 templating the naked features of Popery, stripped of all dis- 
 guise. They saw the bitter enmity it bore to the civil and 
 religious rights of mankind, and were consequently better 
 judges of what was neceesary for the future security of the 
 British Constitution, than we of this generation, who (thanks 
 to a kind Providence !) have had no such experience. 
 
 •* 2. The Papists who have demeaned themselves with any 
 tolerable prudence have had no more to complain of from the 
 severity of these laws, than if they were not obnoxious to 
 them ; and even the indiscreet zeal of others of them has been 
 overlooked and connived at, through the lenity of the Govern- 
 ment, in cases where they have laid themselves sufficiently 
 open, to justify the severest restraints prescribed by law for 
 the safety of the public. Hence we may learn to what de- 
 gree the pestilent influence of Popish bigotry works upon the 
 human spirit, when even they who are tinctured with it can- 
 not forbear provoking the very Government which protects 
 them, not only in the peaceable enjoyment of their temporal 
 property, but even in their improvement of it in many cases, 
 equally with those subjects who give the civil magistrate the 
 utmost security for their allegiance. Whatever may be 
 thought of this indulgence in a patriotic view, it is greatly for 
 the honour of the Protestant principle of toleration ; at the 
 same Ume that the returns the civil government has met 
 
 359 
 
 with for it, afford the strongest fea^ons for not relaxing those 
 necessary provisions wliicli alone prevent the spirit of Popery 
 
 b.fw''^ ^^he promoters of the late repealing statutes looked 
 L i /h . ^i themselves in the situation of our ancestors ; 
 
 had they taken a retrospective view of massacres in cold blood 
 of flames scarce extinguished, of plots and rebellions with 
 difficul y discovered and suppressed ; they would have been 
 
 wouTd.'' r '"''^"'"' ''''''' "^ ^^P^^y> ^"^ --^ -^^ 
 Seriate. ''' ^"^"'^ '' unanimously through the British 
 
 In the execution of the penal laws, certain it is, that a 
 Christian spirit of moderation has been manifested. Thev 
 were seldom enforced, but when a turbulent and rebellious 
 conduct of the Papists rendered it absolutely needful : and 
 even then, they were inflicted by the hand of discriminating 
 justice ; not confounding the innocent with the ,uilty. And 
 notwithstanding all that we are told of the severity of these 
 
 Idlu r T"''^' indeed when compared with the bloody 
 edicts wi,eh are still in full force against Protestants in many 
 Popish c^^^ While Papists m England are claiming 
 
 tesri r""'''''''^'' ''^^ ^'""^' ^-^-^-ber that Pro- 
 
 Ze C t :^ "^' " ^^"^ P»--> ^-testants 
 
 are, by la^, condemned to death.-^Astonishing contrast » 
 which needs only to be considered, to evidence ^the mp t: 
 pnety of repealing the Popery Code. Its wisdom and pX 
 
 yeais and it i. to them we are at this day indebted under 
 
 trun^T '^: ''- ^^-^^^^^"^^ ^^^- nghtsind "; ': 
 
 By late acts of Parliament, however, some of our wisest 
 
 ot co:Vt:ti'T^^^^ ''-' ''-'' ^^p-^^^' -^' ^^^^^y 
 
 our Constitution has been endangered. It is indeed a melan^ 
 choly considemion I But I trust that those, who a^ the 
 
360 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 appointed defenders of our civil and religious privileges, wilt 
 now resolutely preserve tUem from the farther encroach- 
 ments of Popery, and its inseparable concomitant, arbitrary 
 power. If they want any excitement to this, they need only 
 attend to the fatal consequences likely to result from the re- 
 peal of the penal laws ; and they appear truly alarming. 
 The chief obstacles to Popery being removed. Popish priests, 
 arid other missionaries, will take encouragement to resort hi- 
 ther, and " compass sea and land to make proselytes." Po- 
 pish' teachers will also be equally assiduous in seducing the 
 children of the poor. Books will be published, catechisms 
 dispersed, and no pains spared to captivate the unwary. 
 
 This, undoubtedly, has been the case for many years past, 
 and will be a growing evil. Bishop Newton, in his Charge 
 to the Clergy, 17G6, begins thus: " You cannot but be sen- 
 sible, that many and grievous complaints have been made 
 lately of the great growth and increase of Popery in this king- 
 dom Even the public papers have rung out the alarm-bell 
 in the ears of the people, from one end of the land unto the 
 other We cannot indeed be too much alarmed, nor too much 
 upon our -..ard, against any advances of so corrupt a religion, 
 which is no less an enemy to our cicil than our reli^^ions l.ber- 
 
 ties." 
 
 " Great industry" (says he again) " is used by numbers of 
 priests, to undermine the Protestant religion. Bribes are 
 -iven and large promises of support and encouragement, to 
 the meaner people; catechisms and books of devot.on are pn- 
 vatelv dispersed ; mass-houses are erecting every where, and 
 priests olhciate with open doom ; they insinuate themselves 
 into private families, and kindly receive the necessitous and 
 distressed, on condition of their living and dying in the bosom 
 of the Catholic- Church. These are the new methods of con- 
 version. But shall Protestants be asleep, while the enemy is 
 thus rhrilavt and awake / Have we any concern for the re- 
 forn.ed'religion, for the liberties of our country, and for the 
 welfare of our dear children and posterity ? Let us then 
 « stand last in the libeitv wherewith Christ hath made us tree. 
 
 3S1 
 
 Let Churchmen and Dissenters lay aside their mutual jealou- 
 sies of each other, and bind their united forces against the 
 common enemy. And may the wisdom of the Legislature be 
 directed to sucli measures, consistent with the laws of Chris- 
 tianity, and the natural riglits of mankind, as may strengthen 
 the i':otestant interest, and elfectually prevent the growth of 
 a lelisioii, whi'jh would rob us of all that is dear to us as men 
 and Ch>' 
 
 The Ketoniiation lias happily freed us from that " yoke 
 which oar lktiie,-s were not able to bear ;" and if we could 
 again submit our necks to it, we should deserve as little pity 
 as the Israelites, >vlio, while they were fed with " bread from 
 heaven." yet lonxed to return to the " leeks, and the onions, 
 and the garlic," in J-gypt. We Britons geneiailv pretend to 
 be jealous and tender of our civil liberties, let us at least be 
 as jealous and tender of our spiritm/ .- now cspecialiv. when 
 the agents and emissaries of the Church of Rome are'so busy 
 and successful in making converts. Slavery of any kind is 
 bad : and surely that of the bod;, is not worse than timt of the 
 Mind &m\ co,,ciuice ; but both together must be intolerable 
 It there were no other argument pgalnst Popery, vet this is 
 argument suiiicient, that we sliould not be sha-cs. 
 
 If we also look forward to futurity, and have pny re-ard for 
 succeeding generations, the conse(]uences of removincr „ll re- 
 straints from the Papists will appear yet more fatal. " Pohcy 
 teaches them to be cautious at present, lest they should alarm 
 the Legislature. They are therefore now concerting and car- 
 rying on their schemes in -ji secret manner; but the evils will 
 be seen and felt hereafter. 
 
 Bishop Newton, in one of his charges to the cl«r<rv, speak- 
 ing ot the arrival of so many Jesuits ia this cour.trv, (vvhom 
 he calls " the pests and incendiaries of the ^^o,•id,") says 
 "Artful and insinuating as theyare.they will have fhe cannin- 
 and address to shew themselves as little as possible till a ia- 
 voui-able opportunity shall oiler itself. Like moles, they work 
 under ground, undermining the faith and conscience of as 
 many as come in their way ; and their operations are visiUe, 
 
 A A 
 
 
a62 
 
 STRONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIM^ 
 
 d6i 
 
 while they themselves remain unseen. It is tlie more difficult 
 to guard against them by reason of the variety o4* shapes which 
 they assume, and the surprising changes and metamorphose<«i 
 which they undergo. They seldom appear in their proper 
 colours, but take as many forms as Proteus ; and, like Pro- 
 teus, they must be manacled and bound, before they will 
 return to their own shape," 
 
 This may be equally applied to most of the Romish priests, 
 missionaries, and school-masters. By educating many of our 
 children, and assiduously endeavouring to proselyte their pa- 
 rents, they are sapping the very foundations of our Constitu- 
 tion, in Church and State. Shall Protestants, then, be acces- 
 sary to. such measures, and help them to overturn it? 
 
 But, Britons, I would now draw your attention to a very 
 material consideration; and I hope you will not be offended 
 with me for hinting, that I fear those amongst you who fa- 
 vour the Popish claims at present, think yourselves ** wiser in 
 your generation" than, any of your ancestors. 
 
 They well knew that landed property and parliamentary influ- 
 ence were inseparable ; and, therefore, to form a bulwark for 
 the defence of our Constitution, wisely concluded, that it was 
 their indispensable duty, not only by the Test Act, to exclude 
 Papists from sitting in the House ; but to prevent them from 
 interfering in the choice of representatives, by depriving them 
 of the means of influence amongst the electors. 
 
 For these important ends, by an Act of William III. Papists 
 were disabled to purchase, and incapacitated to inherit, any 
 landed property ; and their estates were given to the next of 
 kin, being Protestants. By these means. Protestantism was 
 encouraged, the wings of Popish arrogance were clipped, and 
 Papists, being no longer in a situation to acquire landed pro- 
 perty, lost their influence ; and our liberties have been pre- 
 served to this day. 
 
 The severity of this statute was felt in its operation by Pa- 
 pists of the last century ; and Government has experienced the 
 policy of it, from its effiects, in this. Papists, incapacitated 
 to purchase lands, were necessitated to lay out their monies 
 
 in the funds, whereby they contributed to the support of the 
 State ; and the Papists, in our day, have scarcely felt any 
 inconvenience therefrom; having been habituated, for nd 
 many years, to acquire a monied interest, in lieu of landed 
 property. But this barrier is now removed ; these clauses 
 are all repealed ; and Papists are enabled to purchase whdt 
 they can, and capacitated to inherit all they purchase. 
 
 What, then, is likely to be the result? Why, that the^ 
 money they have been accumulating will be withdrawn from 
 the funds, and expended on the purchase of estates, which 
 they must consider as far more advantageous to their interests, 
 in every respect. And, indeed, it is a very discouraging 
 thought, that lands are not worth, at this time, near so much 
 as they were. This is owing to the scarcity of specie ; but 
 there is not such a scarcity with the Papists. The necessity 
 of the times will compel many to part with their estates ; and 
 Papists have an opportunity of purchasing for less than their 
 value, and thereby of getting a great part of the landed pro- 
 perty of the kingdom into their own hands. Being ena'bled 
 to purchase, and capacitated to inherit, they will acquire an 
 increase of power, as their landed property increases; and, 
 by their landed property, will certainly; in a future period, 
 influence our elections in Parliament. 
 
 By an influence in parliamentary elections, a future Par- 
 liament may be found endued with such a liberal spirit of 
 toleration, as to remove the Test-Act ; to qualify them for 
 offices of magistracy, and give them an opportunity of sitting 
 in both Houses of Parliament : Or Papists (as they can have 
 dispensations for oaths) may think it a duty they owe to the 
 Church of Rome, to conform to the rites of the Church of 
 England, and even to profess themselves Protestants, for a 
 season, in oi-der to obtain seats in the great council of the 
 nation, whereby they may eftectually serve the interests of 
 Popery. 
 
 Should' such a period arrive, (and most a'ssurediy it' will, 
 unless wise and tioiely measures be taken to prevent it;)' 
 wherr theiL.will bD*^ the" safety of theProtestatit succession 
 
 A A 2 
 
 r 
 
3d4 
 
 STRONG REASON* AGAINST 
 
 in the present royal family? An<l what security will our 
 posterity have for the preservation of their civil and religious 
 liberties ? 
 
 Not are these dismal events improbable, perhaps not very 
 remote. If Papists have power, it must necessarily be used, 
 to spread and exalt Pooery throughout the united kingdom ; 
 and having the sword of magistracy in their hands, EngUiud 
 and Ireland will again be deluged with the blQod of martyrs ; 
 our happy freedom be exchanged for bondage, and our pure 
 religion be discarded, to make room for Romish superstition. 
 
 The last observation I shall make on the consequences re- 
 sulting from one of the late acts in favour of the Papists, seems 
 to me of great importance, aiul demands the most serious 
 attention. In that Act of Parliament, the oaths of aUegi- 
 ance and srupremacy, and the oath of abjtiratio/i, are compre- 
 bended in one form ; and, to accommodate the Papists, the 
 words " ecclcsiasticar or " spiritual,'' are omitted, and the 
 words, ** temporal or civil,'' inserted in their stead. No Pa- 
 pist could conscientiously have sworn, that the Pope and 
 bishops appointed by him had no ecclesiastical or spiritual 
 authority or pre-eminence ; when every Papist, as such, ne- 
 cessarily owes implicit obedience, in spiritual matters, to the 
 Pope of Rome. The words ecclesiastical or spiritual, are, 
 therefore, left out ; and the words temporal or civil, substi- 
 tuted ; and, by this very material alteration in the form of the 
 oath, the spiritual and ecc/c^/a^^/ca/ jurisdiction of the Pope 
 and Popish prelates (for there are titular bishops already ap- 
 pointed over every see throughout the kingdom) is tacitly 
 acknowledged, and virtually recognised, by the Legislature ; 
 by which means the Constitution is violated. 
 
 What great reason, therefore, have I, to call upon " the 
 High Court of Parliament," to reconsider the indiscreet advan- 
 tages they have offered the Papists ; and, in the most earnest 
 manner to entreat them, not to yield to the artful insinua- 
 tions of those, who would persuade them to the removal of 
 the principal barrier which fences and secures our civil and 
 ecclesiastical system, by a repeal of the Test-act. It is possible. 
 
 THE CATHCLIC CLAIM?. 
 
 365 
 
 theie may be many very sanguine for the abolition of this law, 
 wlio do not apprehend then selves under undue influence! 
 Such is the nature of self-love, that private interests often 
 opei-atc in such a manner upon the mind, as to incline it to 
 believe, tliat its sensations and suggestions are compatible 
 with the public good; and sometimes, indeed, there is an 
 accidental coincidence between them. But experiments, 
 w^hich affect the fundamental principles of the Constitution, 
 are always dangerous. Only take away the specious pretence 
 which covers those passions, which give animation to all the 
 proceedings upon this occasion, and the monster will appear 
 in all its native deformity. 
 
 "The present pretence" (says Archdeacon Blackburne) 
 ** for having the penal laws superceded, is, that the occasion! 
 upon which they were enacted no longer subsist. The mean- 
 ing of which, (to make this a good reason for silencing those 
 laws,) should be, that the PapFsts have noiv renounced those 
 principles which- rendered tiieir forefathers obnoxious to the 
 government under which they lived. For, barely to say, 
 that the Papists have not, for some years backward, engaged 
 m the same kind of treasons and conspiracies that their fore- 
 fathers did,* is only saying, that the laws enacted for securing 
 the public against the pernicious tendency of their principles, 
 have had a good effect: which, while the same principles 
 are still espoused by the Papists of the present age, is the 
 best reason in the w^orld for continuing the laws against them 
 in full force and vigour; and the natural consequence of 
 repealing them must be, an immediate return to their endea- 
 vours to subvert our Constitution, to which they must be 
 urged by their principles with the more alacrity, as they 
 might then take their measuresfor that purpose with impunity.*' 
 
 ♦ It was in the year 1768, that the Archdeacon published 
 these remarks; but had he been writing in the present day 
 he could have reverted the plea here urged for the Papists,' 
 and have said, " for some years backward" they have been 
 " engaged m the same kind of treason* and conspiracies that 
 their forefathers did." 
 
366 
 
 tT|LONG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 367 
 
 Now, though " tlie wisdom that is from above is pure and 
 peaceable," and though our holy religion enjoins us to " do 
 violence to no man," yet it commands us, also, to " beware of 
 men:" Matt. x. 17. For (as our Saviour has forwamed us) 
 •* the time cometh, that whosoever kiileth you, will think that 
 he doeth God service." Johnxvi. 2. And, upon this mistaken 
 principle, have not the Papists too often acted, are they 
 not still acting, in those countries, where the civil power is 
 lodged in their hands? Shall we, thin, in a Protestant 
 kingdom, furnish them with weapons, to repeat their atrocious 
 and bloody deeds ? God forbid ! Again I say, beware of 
 such men. 
 
 The caution is more needful, at this time, as it has been said 
 (^nd it appears probable) that, while the late disabilities and 
 incapacities of the Papists remained, their numbers diminished 
 and the proportion of Protestants increased in Ireland. But it 
 is now stated, with confidence, that since the first relaxation of 
 the laws, the Roman Catholics have added very greatly to their 
 population. If this be so, I am sure it would be a reason with 
 me, for lamenting that the Legislature in any respect gave way : 
 but it would be an additional and most powerful reason for not 
 going one step farther. I should, even if the interest of the 
 State was out of the question, upon motives of general policy, 
 be sorry to see any measure adopted which gave encouragement 
 to the Romish religion ; and I think it to be the duty of every 
 truly good man, to discourage, as much as he can, the 
 extension of a communion which avows so many perni- 
 cious principles, which has so essentially corrupted the true 
 religion. 
 
 It seems strange, indeed, that, in an age which boasts of its 
 Uberality, it should become a fashion to consider, as a matter 
 of indifference, the progress of a religion, which is the most 
 narrow and bigoted in its principle; which avowedly obstructs, 
 and has all along obstructed, all enquiry into the foundations 
 upon which it stands ; which in various ways, and by necessary 
 consequence, binds itself to stop the spread of useful knowledge ; 
 and which, in the memorable cases of Roger Bacon, of Galileo, 
 
 and of many others, has actually persecuted science, in the 
 persons of those who were its most learned and meritorious 
 professors. But this is one of those contradictions which lead 
 one to suspect either the sincerity or the wisdom of those in 
 whom they are found ; and which warrant the obseiTation, that 
 a man may so enlarge his views, as to embrace more than is 
 useful or rational. 
 
 Let me repeat it, I would discourage, by all possible means, 
 that which ought in plain terms to be called Popery ; but 
 which we are now enjoined to call by a name which carries 
 absurdity on the very face of it, the Catholic (i. e, universal) 
 religion. I would discourage it not by murder, open or secret, 
 not by persecution of any sect, (for that my religion as well aS 
 disposition forbids,) not even, unless the plainest and most im- 
 perious necessity required it, by such disabilities as were for- 
 merly imposed on Papists, and have been lately repealed, 
 because I would allow to all men, what I claim for myself, 
 every indulgence which can be enjoyed without prejudice to 
 the public. — But I do say, that it is detrimental to the State 
 that any part, the most trifling or remote, in the administra- 
 tion of the Government, should be placed in the hands of 
 Papists. Nay, thinking as I do, that our Constitution is the 
 best which ever was fi-amed, and feeling that it is what they 
 must aim to subvert, if they ever have it in their power, I say 
 also, that it is for their oicn advantage to debar them from it. 
 If I am put to the dilemma raised by the Petitioners them- 
 selves, very unwisely, I think, upon their possessing the 
 elective^ and being denied the representative franchise, I 
 have no hesitation in declaring, that they ought to have 
 neither. And I do think, that the circumstances under which 
 that same elective franchise was conceded, so soon after 
 it had been refused,* argues not much for the wisdom 
 or the soundness of the motives upon which the Piir- 
 liament proceeded in making that concession. If I were 
 further pushed, and put to a dilemma still more strong, I 
 
 ♦ Only the spring before. 
 
 
36a 
 
 iTROJJG REASONS AGAINST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 369 
 
 should have no hesitation to prefer the repealing of 
 every concession which has been made in this reign, before 
 the grant of those further privileges which are now claimed. 
 And I am happy to lind, that, in this opinion, an able states- 
 man (Lord Sidmouth) concurs. For he lately said, in the 
 House of Lords, " If I were put to the necessity of choosing 
 between the total emancipation of the Catholics, or the re- 
 enactment of the penal laws, in such an alternative, I would 
 prefer the latter as the lesser evil.'* 
 
 Now, from the whole of what has been said, in this sec* 
 tipn, and elsewhere, is it not evident, that, instead of freeing 
 the Papists from the remaining restrictions upon them, we 
 should rather lament that any have been remotcd ? For, the 
 more liberty they have acquired, the more presuming they 
 iiave grown. Their principles are such that they cannot be 
 trusted with any political power: and therefore it is to be 
 hoped, that the guardians of our admirable polity will notsui- 
 fer it to be any farther infringed, but will rather be determined 
 to crush every attempt of the kind. 
 
 Whenever, under the pretence of conscience and religion, 
 men profess such principles as manifestly break in npon the 
 peace and due regulations of civil society, and shew that their 
 practice corresponds therewith, the magistrate may interpose 
 his authority with the highest propriety. The same Scriptures 
 which reserve to the Christian his right of private opinion in 
 matters />wrf/i/ r^/i^/oz^^, reserve likewise to the civil magisti-ate 
 his right of punishing evil-doers. The same Scriptures which 
 take the conscientious Christian out of the hands of earthly 
 judgment, with respect to his faith, and mode of worship, 
 \>y leaving him to stand or fall to his heavenly Master alone ; 
 deliver him over to the civil justice of his country, the mo- 
 ment he takes occasion to violate the peace of civil inter- 
 course. The same Scriptures make it the duty of the magis- 
 trate to see that his subjects lead quiet and peaceable lives in 
 (fll honesty, as well as in all godliness : and therefore can 
 never be understood to countenance or abet the disturbers of 
 pociety, or the transgressors of the known rules of righteous* 
 
 iiess, upon any pretended plea of conscience. The Christian 
 religion disclaims the province of regulating civil connexion, 
 farther than, by instilling good principles, and reforming the 
 manners of individuals, it provides for the peace and welfare 
 of societies, made up of Christian governors and Christian 
 subjects ; and for the rest confines itself to its proper office 
 of conducting men to a kingdom lohich is not of this world. 
 
 But, if any of the subjects of a worldly kingdom, instead 
 of "- submitting themselves to the higher powers, which are 
 ordained of God," foment discord, treason, and insurrection, 
 then, the ruler of the people is bound to prove himself " the 
 minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that 
 doeth evil,*' Rom. xiii. 4. And, accordingly, in the service ap- 
 pointed for the liftli of November, this prayer occurs, 
 ** Strengthen the hands of our gracious sovereign King George, 
 and all that are put in authority under him, with judgment 
 and justice, to cut oif all such workers of iniquity, as turn 
 religion into rebellion, and faith into faction, that they may 
 never prevail against us, or triumph in the ruin of thy Church 
 
 among us. 
 
 Havhig now pointed out the fatal consequences of the late 
 Acts of Parliament, whereby part of the Popery Code has 
 been repealed, to remedy the evils, let the Protestants through- 
 out the kingdom associate as one man, and apply to Govern- 
 ment for redress ; and thus shew, that the sense of the pcH>ple 
 at large is not to favour Popery ; and that whilst they are 
 supported by British Protestants, and loyal friends, they have 
 nothing to fear from Popish adversaries. 
 
 Something is necessaiy to be done, to assure the nation in 
 general, and Papists in particular, tliat it is not the intention 
 of the I^egislature to encourage the grovvth of Popery. Pa- 
 pists are insolent and refractory ; and nothing but a law to 
 rescind or qualify the late act, can keep them within the 
 bounds of allegiance and decency. 
 
 This is absolutely requisite, to satisfy the minds of all true 
 Protestants ; to save the Constitution from further violation ; 
 \Q preserve thf^ Protestant interest in this kingdpm from that 
 
370 
 
 SJROVQ REASONS ▲GAI>'ST 
 
 THE CATHOLIC CLAIMS. 
 
 8T> 
 
 imminent danger with which it was threatened ; and to se- 
 cure the Protestant succession in the family of his present 
 Majesty. 
 
 Our Constitution has marked out the mode of obtaining 
 redress ; and declares, that it is the right of the subject to 
 petition. Let petitions therefore be circulated throughout 
 the empire : let the Clergy of the Establishment, and Protes- 
 tant ministers of every denomination, and all who are zea- 
 lous for the welfare and safety of the Protestant religion, cor- 
 dially unite, and stenuously exert themselves on this impor- 
 tant occasion. 
 
 Let petitions against the Popish bills and their present 
 claims be sent to Parliament, with numerous signatures 
 from every county, city, and corporation ; and from other 
 respectable bodies of people. Let our representatives be 
 instructed by their constituents, to support these petitions 
 in the House; and, as a general election has just taken 
 place, we have reason to hope, that these instructions will 
 be attended to. Should they be neglected, we soon shall 
 have an opportunity in our hands? of electing members 
 more attentive to the voice of the people, and the preserva- 
 tion of the Protestant interest. 
 
 If such measures be adopted by Protestants with unani- 
 mity; Government may with safety relieve us from our 
 fears, by repealing the late act; and have nothing to 
 dread from the resentment of the Papists : but, should it be 
 objected, that, as the acts are passed, it would now be dan- 
 gerous to repeal them, let us at least apply for a restraining 
 act, to qualify, amend, and explain them — an act, to de- 
 clare that the former Penal Statutes are in full force, and that 
 in case of their being broken, magistrates shall be obliged to 
 pMt them into execution — an act, to prevent the Papists 
 (if they must be permitted to acquire landed property) from 
 interesting themselves, directly or indirectly, in any election 
 for members of Parliament, on pain of forfeiture of their 
 estates — an act, to prevent foreign Popish emissaries from 
 resorting hither under heavy penalties, and to prohibit the 
 
 attempts of Papists to pervert Protestants to their erroneous 
 tenets, on pain of exemplary punishment — and lastly, an act, 
 to restrain them from keeping public schools, and teaching the 
 children of Protestant parents, on pain of perpetual im- 
 prisonment or banishment. 
 
 As to declaring the former laws against the Papists yet in 
 force; if the late acts v^fere designed only to repeal detached, 
 parts of a single statute, and the former laws are not under- 
 stood to be affected thereby; it will be an act of kindness 
 to the Papists, to put them on their guard, by such a decla- 
 ration ; or, otherwise, their zeal to proselyte may expose them 
 to disagreeable consequences. 
 
 It is not meant that these statutes should be executed with 
 severity. Whilst Papists continue peaceable, and do not 
 attempt^to diffuse their pernicious principles, what will they 
 have to apprehend from that spirit of lenity with which 
 these statutes have ever been enforced ? 
 
 We presume that it would be better if the late acts of 
 Parliament were totally repealed, and the laws against the 
 Papists placed upon their former footing. But if that cannot 
 be obtained, a qualifying act, with some such restrictions as 
 those above-mentioned, seems absolutely necessary. Thus the 
 Papists would be curbed, but not crushed ; they would not be 
 persecuted, nor could they persecute ; the grand objects of the 
 proposed ASSOCIATION would be accomplished ; the Pro- 
 testant religion would be preserved ; the British Constitution 
 secured ; and the Hanoverian succession established upon the 
 firmest basis. 
 
 Should it be objected, that such a measure may create much 
 discontent, and intestine divisions, which may eventually end 
 in seditions and rebelUon, I allow that it is not improbable. 
 But if this should come to pass, the opponents of the mea- 
 sure are not therefore to insult us, by saying, " This is the 
 consequence of the harshness with which the Roman Catho- 
 lics have been treated, as we forwarned you :" For, in reply 
 to this, the loyal Protestants may justly obsen^e, that it is far 
 better the turbulent and factious spirit of the Catholics should 
 
 i-i. 
 
37^1 
 
 STPkONG nEA.5iONi5, &c. 
 
 i ■ : 
 
 ill 
 
 break foi-th, when they are imrJtr restraint, (aiul, consequently, 
 comparatively impotent,) than that it should burst upon us 
 . with redoubled fury and danger, Avhen invested with that 
 civil power, which would render them formidable enemies. 
 In the one case, we should be sutficiently convinced of 
 their malicious disposition toward us, and be enabled to de- 
 feat their designs, but, in the other case, we shoidd pro- 
 bably fall victims to their insatiate rage, and Popery would 
 rei^n triumphant in our land. 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 IHE following extmct, from the form of Excommunica- 
 tion pronounced at Romc^ow Mau?idi/'Th(frs(Iai/,demonsU2Ltts 
 the mild spirit by which the Papists are actuated towards 
 those whom they deem heretics. 
 
 The title runs thus: •" The Excommunication a/id Anothc- 
 matization of all Heretics whatsoever, and their favourers, 
 and Schismatics, or of those who violate the Ecclesiastical 
 Liberty, or any ways infrin<re the contents of this Bull, which 
 is wont to be published on Maundy-Thursday. 
 
 Sect. i. We excommunicate and anathematize in the 
 name of God Almighty, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and by 
 the authority of the blessed apostles Peter and Paul, and by 
 our own, all Hussites, WicklilTites, Lutherans, Zuinglians, 
 Calvinists, Hugonots, Anabaptists, Trinitarians, and Apos- 
 tates from the Christian faith, and all other heretics by what- 
 soever name they are called, and of whatsoever sect they be: 
 as also their adherents, receivers, favourers, and generally. any 
 defenders of them ; together with all, who, w^ithout our autho- 
 rity, or that of the Apostolic See, knowingly read, keep, print, 
 or any ways, for any cause whatsoever, publicly or privately, 
 on any pretext or colour, defend their books containing heresy, 
 or treating of religion ; as also schismatics, and those who with- 
 draw themselves, or recede obstinately from the obedience of 
 us, or the Bishop of Rome, for the time being. 
 
 " Given at Rojue from St. Peter, in tlje year of our Lord's in- 
 carnation, ICAO, the 8th of April, in the fifth year of our 
 popedom. 
 
 " James Brambilla, Moir, Curs."' 
 
 'M> 
 
374 
 
 APPENl)llC< 
 
 APPCMDIX. 
 
 37S 
 
 In the Year 1765. 
 A genuine copy of a Popish excommunication, found 
 amongst the papers of Philip Dunn, deceased, a Popish b.shop. 
 at his house in the county of Wicklow, pronounced by him 
 against Francis Freeman, one of his parishioners, who at that 
 time embraced the Protestant religion. Faithfully translated 
 from the Latin original, by Dr. Tooker. ^ 
 
 " By authority of God the Father Almighty, and the blessed 
 Virgin Mary, and of St. Peter and St. Paul, and all the holy 
 saints We excommunicate Francis Freeman, late of the county 
 of Dublin, but now of Juck-miU, in the county of Wicklow, 
 that in spite of God and St. Peter, and in spite of all the holy 
 saints, and in spite of our most holy father the Pope, (God's 
 vicar on earth.) and in spite of our right reverend father m 
 God, Philip Dunn, our diocesan, and worshipful canons, who 
 serve God daily ; hath apostatized to a most damnable reli- 
 gion full of heresy and blasphemy ; excommunicated let him 
 be and delivered over to the devil, as a perpetual malefactor,- 
 and schismatic ; accursed let him be in all cities, and m all 
 towns, in fields, in ways, in yards, in houses, and m all other 
 places, whether lying or rising, walking or running, leaning 
 or standing, waking or sleeping, eating or drinking, or what- 
 soever thing he does : besides, we separate him from the 
 threshold and all good prayers of the church ; from the parti- 
 cipation of the holy Jesus ; from all sacraments, chapels, and 
 altars • from the holy bread and holy water ; from all the merit 
 of God's holy priests and religious men, and from their cloy- 
 sters. and all pardons, privileges, grants, and immunities, 
 which all the holy Popes have granted them ; and we give him 
 over utterly to the iiend ; and let him quench his soul when 
 dead in the pains of hell-fire, as this candle is quenched and 
 put out. And let us pray to God. our lady. St. Peter and Si. 
 Paul that all the senses of his body may fail as now the light 
 of this candle is gone ; except he come on sight hereof, and 
 openly confess his damnable heresy and blasphemy, and by 
 repentance make amends as much as in him lies to God, our 
 ladv St. Peter, and the worshipful company of this church ; 
 
 and as the sUflf of this holy cross now falls down, so may he, 
 except he recants and repents." 
 
 Signed " Philip During 
 
 M 
 
 In " The Christian Observer, for Jan. 181-2,** is a similar 
 specimen of Papal excommunication, which the Rev. Matt. 
 Place, of Hampreston found in the hands of one of his pa- 
 rishioners, against a professional man of that place, for having 
 renounced the errors of the Church of Rome. 
 
 " The Pope's curse, bell, book, and candle, on a heretic at 
 Hampreston. 
 
 •* By the authority of the blessed Virgin Maiy, of St. 
 Peter and Paul, and of the holy saints, we excommunicate, 
 we utterly curse and bar, commit, and deliver to the devil of 
 hell, Henry Goldney of Hampreston, in the county of Dor- 
 set, an infamous heretic that hath, in spite of God, and of St. 
 Peter, whose church this is, &c. committed the heinous 
 crimes of sacrilege with the images of our holy saints, and 
 forsaken our most holy religion, and continues in heresy, 
 blasphemy, and corrupt lust. Excommunicated be he finally, 
 and given soul and body to the devil, to be buffeted. Cursed 
 be he in all holy cities and towns, &c. And we pray to our 
 lady and St. Peter, and Paul, and all holy saints, that all the 
 senses of his body may fail him, and that he may have no 
 feeling, except he come openly to our beloved priest at Stape- 
 hill, in time of mass, within thirty days of the third time of 
 pronouncing hereof by our dear priest there, and confess his 
 heinous, heretical, and blasphemous crimes, and by true re- 
 pentance make satisfaction to cur lady, St. Peter, and the 
 worshipful company of our holy Church of Rome, and suffer 
 himself to be buffeted, scourged, and spit upon, as our said 
 dear priest, in his goodness, holiness, and sanctity, siiall di- 
 rect and prescribe. 
 
 " Given under the seal of our holy Church at Rome, the 
 tenth day of August, in the year of our Lord Christ, one 
 
316 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 thousand seven hundred and fifty-eiglit, and in the first year 
 
 of our pontificate. ^- ^• 
 
 " 8th of Oct. 1758, pronounced the first time. 
 « 15th ofditto, pronounced the second time. 
 " 2*2d of ditto, pronounced the third time.** 
 
 Why do the Petitioners pretend to impose upon the people, 
 that they do not beheve that any Pope or priest can forgive 
 them without sincere repentance, &c. while, as Roman Ca- 
 tholics, they implicitly believe in the power of their ministers 
 to forgive sins, and know that the doctrine of purgatory 
 grants'^ them the power to deliver after death, when there can 
 be no sincere repentance ? It is well known, that printed re- 
 ceipts are given in Ireland, by the Purgatorian Society, (as 
 regularly as a parish receipt for taxes,) for masses said for the 
 deceased friends and relations of those who are weak enough 
 to pay for them. Perhaps, therefore, the Petitioners may have 
 an interest in the united efforts of this society, and there- 
 fore are very easy about obtahiing pardon for what they said 
 in the Petition, during life, seeing they can obtain it after 
 death. 
 
 In " The Christian Observer for Jan. 1812,** there is a let- 
 ter from a gentleman in Dublin to the editor, with an exact 
 copy of a printed notice, which a Dissenting minister got 
 from one of his congregation, who had been educated in the 
 Roman Catholic religion. 
 
 « It is a piofts and salutary thought to pray for the dead, 
 that they may be loosed from their sins, II Mac. xii. 8. 
 
 " Purgatorian Society, 
 
 «* Under the protection of the most glorious name of Jesus. 
 
 •' The stability of this society depends on the punctual pay- 
 ment of your arrears, the sooner to yield relief to the suffering 
 souls in Purgatory, supply the wants of our distressed cler- 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 377 
 
 gymen, and for the spiritual and temporal welfare of its 
 members ; the three principal points of this laudable institu- 
 tion. 
 
 " N. B. Subscriptions received in the school-room of 
 Rosemary-lane chapel, on the first Sunday of each month, 
 from eleven till two o'clock. 
 
 " Your arrears are 6s. 6d. being twelve months subscrip- 
 tion, ending June 1811. 
 
 (Signed by order) 
 
 " J. C. Bacon, President. 
 
 *' You are humbly prayed to continue your laudable exer- 
 tions (so happily experienced since the commencement of this 
 •ociety) in obtaining new subscribers." 
 
 The author was once credibly informed by a lady, who 
 lived in a countiy part of Ireland, that, on her asking the 
 Popish priest, whether he believed the common report that 
 the mountains near the village were haunted, was answered 
 in the affinnative. " And what do you suppose it is** (said 
 she) " that haunts them." He replied, " The ghosts of poor 
 people wanting to be prayed out of purgatory.** And have 
 not you'* (again she asked) " the power of praying them 
 out?** " Yes, to be sure, I have** — (answered he)," but who 
 the devil would pay me for it!** 
 
 A relation, also, of the authoi*s assured him, that as he 
 was coming out of a Popish church in Italy, a man stood at 
 the door, with a plate in his hand, crying out, but in the lan- 
 guage of his country) " Pray remember the poor souls in 
 purgatoiy.*' A nobleman, who was just at his side, then 
 tlirew in a piece of gold into the plate : upon which, (the 
 offering being unusually large,) the man, with seeming ecstacy, 
 exclaimed, " God bless your honour!'* Then lifting his hand 
 upwards, lue said, " There I see one poor soul released out 
 of purgatory !**—** Well,'* (said the other,) " if the poor 
 devil has gptout, I am sure he*ll t*4ke care never to go iu 
 
 B B 
 
97S 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 again ; so I may take my money back"— which he accordingly 
 
 did. 
 
 Who does not clearly see, in all this, the exact fulfilment 
 of the prediction of St. Pe^cr himself, (whose succesaors the 
 Pope and his priests pretend to be,) " Tbere shall be falte 
 teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable he- 
 resies ; and, through covetousness, shall they, wfth feigned 
 words, make merchandise of you?" II Peter, ii. 1. 3. Happy 
 also are they who are delivered from these delusions, and can 
 fay, in the words of the same Apostle, " We have not fol- 
 lowed cunningly devised fables :'* i. id. 
 
 In an Appendix to a pamphlet, entitled, " Popery always 
 the same," (published in London, 1746,) the author recites 
 the Edicts issued against the Protestants, by Lewis XV. 
 which were still more severe than those of his predecessors. 
 From these it appears, that " all exercise of the pretended 
 reformed religion was strictly prohibited''— that " all officers 
 and justices should take care to arraign and convict all preach- 
 ers who should c^U assemblies to preach in them, or perform 
 any other functions ; and also every one of his Majesty's sub- 
 jects who should be present in these assemblies ; in order that 
 all such might be condemned to suffer the punishments men- 
 tioned in his Majesty's edicts"— that " the men who are 
 taken in the fact, should be sent directly, without form of law, 
 to the gallies, to serve as slaves for life" — and that ** the 
 women, whether married, or unmarried, should be confined, 
 the remainder of their days, in places appointed for them"— 
 that * all new converts are obliged to prevent, or give informa- 
 tion against those assemblies, which are never held without 
 their knowledge ; or else they should be punished, as accom- 
 plices in the said assemblies, by pecuniary fines, to be im- 
 posed at pleasure, on those who will not give infocmation of 
 them'*— that, " forasmuch as the preachers, who are the chief 
 abettors of all the assemblies, could not find means to keep 
 them up, did they not meet with easy retreat among tlie new 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 379 
 
 converts, his Majesty orders, that all the new converts, in 
 the several corporations within the limits of which a preacher 
 be taken, shall be fined 3000 livres for the use of the inform- 
 ers who shall have caused them to be apprehended ; besides 
 the arraigning and convicting the person in whose house the 
 preacher shall be taken, according to the rigour of former or- 
 dinances." 
 
 But " the King of France's declaration conceraing reli- 
 gion, given at Versailles, the 14th of May, 1724," is still 
 more cruel and oppressive, as the reader will find by the fol- 
 lowing extracts. 
 
 " Lewis, by the Grace of God, King of France and Navarre: 
 To all, to whom these presents shall come, greeting. Of all 
 the great and important designs, formed in the course of his 
 reign by the late King, our much honoured Great-Grand-Sire, 
 there is none, which we have more at heart, and intend to 
 pursue and execute with more vigour, than the design he had 
 framed, of totally extirpating heresy in his kingdom ; a design 
 which he thought worthy of his unwearied attention to the 
 last moment of his life. With a view to carry on a work so 
 worthy of his piety and zeal, with the advice of our council, 
 and of our own special grace, full power and royal authority, 
 we have required and commanded, and by these presents 
 signed with our own hand, do require and command ; and our 
 will and pleasure is ; 
 
 " Art. I.-^That the Roman Catholic and Apostolic re- 
 Wgkm alone, be exercised in our realms; dominions and coun- 
 tries; and we do forbid all our subjects, of what state, 
 quality and condition soever, to practise any, except the said 
 Catholic religion, or to assemble for that end, in any place, 
 and on any pretence whatsoever ; under pain of being con- 
 demned to the gallies for life, if they are men ; and if women, 
 of being shorn, and confined for ever in such places, as our 
 judges shall think expedient ; with confiscation of goods in 
 either case : and even, under pain of death, to those, who 
 shall assemble in arms. 
 
 " Art. II* — We do command, that all preachers, who shall 
 
 B B 2 
 
380 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 call assemblies, preach in them, or discharge any other func- 
 tion, be put to death; the punishment appointe^l by the 
 declaration in July, 1686, for the ministers of the pretended 
 reformed religion ; which we would not, for the future, have 
 any one esteem a mere threatening, which will not be put in 
 execution. We do likewise forbid our subjects, to receive the 
 said ministers or preachers, to conceal, aid, or assist them, or 
 have directly or indirectly any intercourse or correspondence 
 with them: we farther enjoin all those, who shall know any 
 of the said preachers , to inform against them to the ofncers of 
 the respective places ; the whole under pain, in case of tres- 
 pass, of being condemned to the gallics for life, if men ; and 
 if women, of being shorn, and shut up the remainder of their 
 days, in such places, as our judges shall think expedient; 
 and, whether they be men or women, under pain of confisca- 
 tion. 
 
 Art. III. — We require and command all our subjects, and 
 particularly those, who have heretofore professed the pretend- 
 ed reformed religion, or whose parents made profession of it, 
 that they cause their children to be baptized in the parish- 
 churches, where they live, within four-and- twenty hours after 
 they are born, unless they have obtained leave of the arch- 
 bishops or the diocesan bishops to defer the ceremony of bap- 
 tism for some weighty reasons : we farther enjoin, that all 
 midwives and others, who assist women in the time of delivery, 
 do give notice of the birth of children to the curates of the 
 respective places v and that our officers, and the officers of our 
 high justices, do keep a strict hand in this respect, and punish 
 offenders by fine, and even by greater punishments, if the 
 exigence of the case require it. 
 
 " Art. IV. — As to the education of the children of those, 
 who have heretofore professed the pretended reformed reli- 
 gion, or, whose parents made profession of it, our will is, 
 that the edict of January 1686, and the declarations of the 
 13th of December 1698, and of the 16th of October 1700, be 
 put in execution, in every particular therein contained ; more- 
 over prohibiting all our subjects to send their children to be 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 381 
 
 educated out of the kingdom, unless they have first obtained 
 leave of us in writing, sigi>ed by one of our secretaries of 
 state ; which we shall not grant, without being sufficiently 
 satisfied, that the parents are true and sincere Catholics ; and 
 this, upon pain, in case of trespass, of a fine of six thousand 
 livres, at the least, or more in proportion to the estates and 
 abilities of the parents of the said children ; the said fine to 
 be renewed every year, so long as the said children shall, in de- 
 fiance of our prohibitions, remain in foreign countries : in which 
 respect, we enjoin our judges to keep a strict hand. 
 
 •* Art. V. — Our will is, that all possible care be taken to 
 settle in all parishes, where they are not already provided, 
 school-masters and mistresses, to instruct all the children of 
 both sexes in the principal mysteries and duties of the 
 Roman Catholic and Apostolic religion ; to carry them to 
 Mass, as much as may be, &c. 
 
 " Art. VI. — We enjoin all fathers, mothers, tutors, and 
 others, who are concerned in the education of children, par- 
 ticularly of those, whose fathers and mothers professed the 
 pretended reformed religion, or were born of Protestant^ 
 parents, to send them to the schools and catechisms till 
 fourteen years of age ; and from fourteen to twenty, cause 
 them to attend the instructions on Sundays and Holidays, &;c. 
 We also command our judges, attorneys, and those of our 
 high justices^ to make strict enquiry, and give all necessary 
 orders for the execution of our will hi this respect ; and to 
 see, that those, who shall be remiss in their duty, and rash 
 enough to disobey, in any manner whatsoever, be punished by 
 line, to be levied provisionally notwithstanding an appeal, to 
 any sum, which they shall think proper. 
 
 • " Art. VIII. — In time of sickness, when the health of body 
 and soul are equally in danger ; our will is. That the phy- 
 sicians, and, in their absence, the apothecaries and surgeons, 
 who shall be sent for, to visit sick persons, be obliged to give 
 notice to the curates or vicars of the parishes, where the 
 said sick persons dwell, as soon as they shall judge the dis- 
 ease dangerous, to the intent, that the said pjck persons, par* 
 
382 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 ds^ 
 
 ticularly, those lately returned to the comniunion of the 
 Church, may receive fioia them such instructions and spiri- 
 tual consolations, as they shall stand in need of, together 
 with the assistance of the sacraments, when the said curates 
 or vicars shall find, that the sick persons are in a condition 
 to receive them : And we enjoin all relations, servants, and 
 others, who are about the said sick persons, to give them 
 admission to the sick, and receive them with the decency be- 
 coming their character. Our will likewise is, That, those 
 physicians, apothecaries, and surgeons, who shall neglect 
 their duty in this particular, and in like manner, the rela- 
 tions, ser\^nts, and others about the said sick persons, who 
 fhall refuse to introduce the said curates, vicars, or priests, 
 fent by them to the sick persons, be condemned to pay such 
 a fine, as our judges shall see cause ; and also, that the phy- 
 sicians, apothecaries, and surgeons, for the second oftence, be 
 suspended, as the exigence shall require. 
 
 *' Art. IX.--We, in like manner, enjoin all curates, vicars 
 and others, who have cure of souls, to visit with great care 
 and diligence the sick, of what state or quality soever, parti- 
 cularly those, who have heretofore professed the pretended 
 reformed religion, or whose parents made profession of it, 
 that they may, in private and without witness, exhort them 
 to receive the sacraments of the Church, and give them all 
 nece^ssary instructions for that end, with the prudence and 
 charity suitable to their oflfice: but if, in contempt of their 
 exhortations and wholesome counsels, the sick pei-sons refuse 
 to receive the sacraments offered to them, and declare 
 openly, that they are resolved to die in the pretended re- 
 formed religion, and persist in the declaration, they have 
 made during their sickness ; our will is, that if they recover 
 of their sickness, they be arraigned and convicted by our 
 bailiffs, and seneschals, at the requisition of our attorneys, 
 and that they be sentenced to perpetual banishment ; with 
 coufiscationof goods^; and where confiscation donttake place, to 
 a fine, which shall.at feast, amount to half the value of their estate ; 
 If, on the contrary, they die in this wretched disposition, we order 
 
 that their memory be arraigned by our said bailiffs and seties- 
 chals, at the requisition of our attorneys, in the form pre- 
 scribed by the Articles of the Chapter or Tit. XXII. of out 
 ordinance of August 1670, to the end, their said memory may 
 be condemned, with confiscation of their goods, &c. 
 
 " Art. XL — And forasmuch, as we are informed, that-, 
 what contributes most to confirm the said sick persons, or 
 cause them to relapse into their former errors, is the pre- 
 sence and exhortations of certain concealed Religionists, who 
 attend them secretly in that condition, and make an ill use of 
 the prejudices of their childhood, and of the weakness, they 
 are reduced to by their sickness, to persuade them to die out 
 of the bosom of the Church ; We do order. That they, who shall 
 be found guilty of this crime, be arraigned and convicted by our 
 bailiffs and seneschals, as above, and be condemned ; if men, 
 to the gallies for life, or for a time, as our judges shall think 
 proper ; and if women, to be shorn and locked up in such 
 places, as the judges shall appoint, for life, oi; only for a stated 
 time. 
 " Given at Versailles, the 14th day of May, in the year of ouj 
 
 Lord 1724, and in the ninth yeaf of our reign. 
 
 Signed « LOUIS, 
 And lower. By the KING. 
 " DA UPHINy Count of Provence, 
 
 " Phelypeaux, 
 •' And sealed with the great seal of yellow wax." 
 
 " Mr. Bower §ays, that what first occasioned him to contrive 
 his escape from the Inquisition, was the cruelty exercised there, 
 particularly on two gentlemen, whose stories he thus relates. 
 
 " Information having been giving to the Inquisition at Mace- 
 rata, that a gentleman had been guilty of speaking disrespect- 
 fully of their office ; all imaginable diligence was used to discover 
 him ; and advertisements fixed up at Rome, and other places, 
 describing him to be a tall black man, vsith an impediment in his 
 speech. 
 
d84 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 " One of their emissaries happening to be at Florence, in the 
 public walks, met with a person, whom he thought answered 
 the description. Accordingly he spared no pains to insinuate 
 himself into his acquaintance ; and succeeded so far, that the 
 gentleman, hnding him to be a stranger, offered to shew him 
 the principal curiosities of the place ; and entertained him, at 
 his house, in a free and hospitable manner. 
 
 "After some time, the stranger told him, that he hoped he 
 would suffer him to return, the obligation by accompanying 
 him to Rome; and passing some days with him at his seat, in 
 the neighbourhood of that city, where he found the gentleman 
 
 had never yet been. 
 
 " Accordingly they set out together, and instead of carrying 
 him to any house of his own, he led him directly to the palacG 
 of the Inquisition at Macerate, where, after bringing him to 
 the great hali, he desired him to amuse himself with the pain- 
 tings there ; and excused his leaving him a little, to give the 
 necessary orders in the house. 
 
 " Whilst he was thus admiring the grandeur of the place, and 
 suspecting, from the richness of the furniture, that he had not 
 treated his friend with the respect that was his due, he observed 
 several persons peeping one by one at the door, and staring him 
 
 full in the face. 
 
 " Upon this, seeing no sign of his companion s return, he 
 ^eganto suspect some treachery, and was just stepping out, 
 when a person came up to him, and enquiring where he was 
 going, told him, that no body was suffered to depart thi nee ; 
 that he w as noAvin the hall of the Inquisition, and must cer- 
 tainly have been guilty of some great crime, or he would not 
 have been brought thither; so that he must take up his abode 
 
 there. 
 
 " Immediately he was thrust down into the dungeon; where, 
 after being fed for a week with bread and water, he was brought 
 up in the middle of the night to a room hung with black, where 
 the council of the Inquisition v/as sitting, (one of which was 
 Mr. Bower himself,) where be was tokl, by the Inquisitor-Ge- 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 385 
 
 Tieral, that he must certainly have been guilty of some great 
 offence ; for the Holy Inquisition never accused any one rashly; 
 so that he must consider what it was, and impeach himself. 
 
 " Upon his protesting his innocence, he was prepared for the 
 torture, which was inflicted in this manner. The unhappy 
 man was stripped naked, and by means of four ropes, which ^an 
 upon as many pullies, at each corner of the room, his arms and 
 legs were extended, within one degree of breaking ; and he 
 was laid, upon his back, with an iron spike fixed under him. 
 
 " In this condition he lay for some time, in extreme anguish; 
 but still refusing to accuse himself, he was remanded back to 
 his dungeon ; where he had not been long, Ixfore the Inquisi- 
 tion having dispatched an express to Ro??i€y with their suspi- 
 cions, that, from his resolution, and other circumstances, he 
 could not be the man they imagined, received lor answer, that 
 they need give themselves no further trouble about him, for that 
 they had discovered the true offender. Upon which thisgentle- 
 man was discharged, after they had given him an oath of se- 
 crecy. But the hardships, under which he had laboured, and 
 the toi-ments he had suffered, had so far deprived him of the 
 use of his faculties, that he continued the remainder of his life 
 senseless and distracted in the neighbourhood of Macerata. 
 
 " This, Mr. Bower says, shocked him extremely. But what 
 determined him to leave them, when opportunity offered, was 
 the following affair, which he relates thus. — As a nobleman, a 
 friend of his, who was just married, was walking in his garden 
 with his lady; two Capuchin friare passed by with their feet 
 and heads bare, and in the mortifying garb of their order. When 
 they were got to some little distance, and, as he thought, out of 
 hearing, he expressed to his wife his surprize, that any person 
 could be so far infatuated, as to believe that such a particular 
 dress ( odd be meritorious in the sight of God. 
 
 " Unhappily for him, he was overheard by the friars, who 
 made their report to the Inqiiisition. Mr. Bower, as one of 
 theInr;uisitora, was ordered to take a sutlicient guard, which 
 they always had in waiting, to bring his unfortunate friend be- 
 fore t']. m. It would have been vain for him to have expressed 
 
386 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 387 
 
 fv 
 
 the reluctance he inwardly felt ; for tlie least signs of it might 
 have proved fatal to himself. 
 
 " x\bout the middle of the night, he and his attendance ap- 
 peared before the nobleman's door ; when, upon tVieir knock- 
 ing, a servant looked out of a window, and enquiring who was 
 there, was answered, the Holy Inquisition : upon this, know- 
 ing the consequence of a refusal, he hastened down, opened 
 the door, and conducted them into the bed-chamber, where 
 the new-married couple were fast asleep. 
 
 " The first who waked was the lady, who seeing such a crew 
 of rullians in the room, screamed oat, for which she was saluted 
 by one of them with a blow on the face, that made the blood 
 gush out. Mr. Bower was much enraged at this, and asking 
 the fellow what authority he had for such an unparalleled piece 
 of cruelty, threatened him severely, and afterwards had him 
 punished in an exemplary manner. 
 
 " This waked the husband, who being very much surprised 
 at what had happened, casting his eyes on Mr. Bower, cried 
 out, Ah, n\y friend, is it you ! Yes, he replied, it is ; and you 
 must immediately rise and follow me. This he soon complied 
 with. Accordingly he was conducted to the Inquisition, where 
 he was told, he was certainly guilty of some great crime ; 
 and that he had a week given him to recollect himself what it 
 was, and so accuse himself. 
 
 "All that time he was confined in a dungeon, and fed with 
 nothing but bread and water, in order to weaken him, and 
 render him less able to undergo the torture. 
 
 "At the end of the week he was brought, in the night, be- 
 fore the ijifei nal tribunal ; and so altered, that he was scarce 
 known to be the same : and upon his declaring that he was not 
 conscious of any thing culpable, he was led to the torture, 
 which was thus inflicted on him. 
 
 " By means of four cords, which came over four puUies, at 
 each corner of the room, and myt in the centre, he was hoisted 
 up to the ceiling, where, by a sudden jerk, all his bones were 
 dislocated.* 
 
 " After he had hung some time in this deplorable con. 
 dition, the Inquisitor-General, thinking he had not yet suffered 
 enough, commanded them to slacken the cords, in order to let 
 him fall with a shock to the ground. This, after what had been 
 done before, is thought to be one of the greatest torments that 
 human nature is capable of sustaining. But when they came 
 to inflict it, they found that the unhappy man was already dead ; 
 upon which they buried him in a private manner, and sent a 
 note to his wife, desiring her to offer up prayers for his soul, iu 
 all the churches of Rome,** 
 
 After two such specimens of unexampled barbarity, and 
 sanctified villainy, in both of which, by virtue of his oiiice, 
 Mr. -Boirer had been so deeply, though reluctantly, concerned, 
 he was determined, at all events, to make his escape from the 
 Inquisition, which, at last, he happily effected. 
 
 N. B. He publisiied, in several volumes, the Lives of the 
 Popes, wherein lie lias assigned the most substantial reasons 
 for leaving the Church of Ro}ne, in which he had been edu- 
 Gated : and whoever reads them, will shudder at the horrors of 
 Popery, and the hell of an Inquisition. 
 
 See the engraving, Stockdale's Inquisitions. 
 
 Dr. Buchanan, in his " Asiatic Researches," has furnished 
 ns with a very affecting narrative, drawn up by Dr. Dellan, 
 who" had been thrown into the Inquisition at Goa, and 
 confined in a dungeon, ten feet square, where he remained 
 upwards of two years, without seeing any person, but the 
 jailor who carried him his victuals, except when he was 
 brought to Ills trial, expecting daily to be led to the stake. 
 His alleged crime was, charging the Inquisition with 
 cruelty, in a conversation he had with a priest at Da?nai, ano- 
 ther part of India, 
 
 " During the months of November and December, I 
 heard, every morning, the shrieks of the unfortunate victims 
 who wen undergoing the Question. I remembered to have 
 heard, before I was cast into prison, that the AfUo da Fk was 
 generally -elebrated on the first Sunday in Advent, because 
 
*J88 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 on that day is read in the churches that part of the Gospel in 
 which mention is made of the last judgment; and the 
 Inquisitors pretend, by this ceremony, to exhibit a lively 
 emblem of that awful event. I was likewise convinced, that 
 there were a great number of prisoners, besides myself ; the 
 profound silence, which reigned within the walls of the 
 building, having enabled me to count the number of doors 
 which were opened at the hours of meals. However, the 
 iirst and second Sundays of Advent passed by, without my 
 hearing of any thing; and I prepared to undergo another 
 year of melancholy captivity, when I was aroused from my 
 despair, on the 11th of January, by the noise of the guards 
 removing the bars from the door of my prison. The Alcaide 
 presented me with a habit, which he ordered me to put on, 
 and to make myself ready to attend him, when he should 
 come aoain. Thus saying, he left a lighted lamp in my dun- 
 geon. — The guards returned, about two o'clock in the morn- 
 ing, and led me out into a long gallery, where I found a 
 numbor of the companions of my fate, drawn up in a rank 
 against a wall : I placed myself among the rest, and several 
 more soon joined the melancholy band. The profound 
 silence and silliness caused them to resemble statues, more 
 than the animateil bodies of human creatures. The women, 
 who were cloathed in a similar manner, were placed in a 
 neighbouring gallery, wliere we could not see them ; but I 
 remarked that a number of persons stood by themselves at 
 some distance, attended by others, who wore long black 
 dresses, and who walked backwards and forwards occasion- 
 ally. I did not then know who these were ; but I was after- 
 wards informed, that the former were the victims who were 
 condeiTined to be burned, and the others were their confessors. 
 
 " After we were all ranged against the wall of this galleiy, 
 we received each a large wax taper. They then brought us a 
 number of dresses made of yellow cloth, with the cross of St. 
 Andrew painted before and behind. This is called the San 
 Benito. The relapsed heretics wear another species of robe, 
 called the Samarra, the ground of which is grey. The por-. 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 389 
 
 trait of the sufteror is painted upon it, placed upon burning 
 torches w.th flames and demons all round.-Caps were then 
 produced, called Carrochas ; n,ade of pasteboard, pointed like 
 «ugar loaves, all covered over with devils, and flames of fire • 
 " The great bell of the cathedral began to ring a little be- 
 tore sun-nse, which Served as a signal to wan, the people of 
 Ooa, to come and behold the august ceremony of the Auto da 
 tt ; and then they made us proceed fiom the gallery one by 
 one. I remarked, as we passed into the great hall,\hat the 
 Inquisitor was sitting at the door with his secreta.y by him 
 and that he delivered every prisoner into the hands of a par- 
 ticular person, who is to be h.s guard to the place of burnin<^ 
 1 hese persons are called I'arrains or Godfathers. My God- 
 lather was the commander of a ship. I went forth with him 
 and as soco as we were in the street, I saw that the proces- 
 sion was commenced by the Dominican friars; who have 
 this honour because St. Dominic founded the Inquisition. 
 These are followed by the prisoners, who walk one after 
 he other, each having his Godfather by his side, and a 
 
 and as I did not pass for one of them, there were many 
 who took precedence of me. The women were mixed 
 promiscuously with the men. We all walked barefoot, and 
 the sharp stones of the streets of Goa wounded my tender 
 feet, and caused the blood to stream : for they made us 
 march through the chief streets of the city : and we were re- 
 garded eveiy where by an innumerable crowd of people 
 who had assembled from all parts of India, to behold this 
 
 betoie, in the most remote parishes. 
 
 "At length we arrived at the Church of St. Francis, which 
 was^for t IS time, destined for the celebration of t^.Actf 
 a^ h On one side of the altar, was the Grand Inquisito; 
 and his Counsellors ; and, on the other, the Vice-Roy of Goa 
 and his Court. All the prisoners are seated to hear a sermon' 
 
 • See^engravings, Sockdale's History of the Inquisition. 
 
390 
 
 ArPEKDIX. 
 
 I obBerved that those prisoners who were th« horrible Car- 
 rochas came in last in the procession. One of the Augustin 
 Monks ascended the pulpit, and preached for a quarter of an 
 an hour. The sermon being concluded; two readers went up 
 to the pulpit, one after the other, and read the sentences of 
 the prisoners. My joy was extreme, when I heard that my 
 tentence was not to be burnt, but to be a galley-slave for 
 five years.— After the sentences were read, they summoned 
 forth those miserable victims who were destined to be jrri- 
 molated by the Holy Inquisition. The images of the heretics, 
 who had died in prison, were brought up at the same time, their 
 bones being contained in small chests, covered with flames and 
 demons.— An officer of the secular tribunal now came forward 
 and seized these unhappy people, after they had each received 
 » slight bloio upon the breast, from the AlcaiJe, to intimate that 
 they were abandoned. They were then led away to the 
 bank of the river, where the Vice-Roy and his court were 
 assembled, and where the faggots had been prepared the 
 preceding day. As soon as they arrive at this place, the 
 condemned prisoners are asked in what religion they chuse 
 to die ; and the moment they have replied to this question, 
 the executioner seizes them, and binds them to a stake in the 
 midst of the faggots. The day after the execution, the por- 
 traits of the dead are carried to the Church of the Dominicans. 
 The heads only are represented, (which are generally very 
 accurately drawn, for the Inquisition keeps excellent limners 
 for the purpose,) surrounded by flames and demons ; and 
 underneath is the name and crime of the person who has 
 been burned."— Re/ation de V Inquisition rfe Goa, chap, xxiv. 
 Also Stockdale's History of the Inquisition. 
 
 Dr. Buchanan informs us, that the chief Inquisitor (when 
 conversing with him on this subject) " admitted that Dillon's 
 descriptions of the dungeons, of the torture, of the mode of 
 trial, and of the Auto da F^, were in general just." 
 
 " It is not to be denied but that the Pope, upon just cause, 
 hath power to absolve, both himself and all others, from the 
 religious and legal obligation of an oath." 
 " After a prince is by name excommunicated by the Pope. 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 391 
 
 u* subjects are fi«ed from their allegiance ; his countiy be- 
 come* the right of Catholics, who. beyond all contradiction 
 •-xtermmating the heietic inhabitants, may possess it as their 
 
 " The power of depriving kings of their crown, and ernpe^ 
 rors of then dignities, for the good of the Church and souls 
 was always peculiar to the Pope ; 
 
 " Who hath no less authority, as Christ's vicar, over Chris- 
 tians, than the shepherd over his sheep. 
 
 "It is not' lawful for Christians to tolerate any kincr. who 
 draweth his subjects into heresy. ° 
 
 " But subjects ought 10 endeavour to set up another in his 
 place. 
 
 Chrlt^''''^^^ ^° expel him his kiligdom, as the enemy of 
 
 " This is the undoubted judgment of the most learned, and 
 agreeable to apostolical truth. 
 
 « We. by our apostolical authority, do absolve all subjects - 
 from their oaths of fealty, which they have sworn to prince, 
 excommunicated. 
 
 " We excommunicate all heretic princes, and absolve their 
 subjects from their oaths and duties of allegiance. 
 
 m absolve all subjects of England from the oaths the,, hate 
 taken to Elizabeth their queen." 
 See Sir Richard Steel's Appendi.r. 
 
 " Mr. de Voltaire, in his " Treatis^ on Religious Toleration " 
 has supplied us with similar extracts, from some of the Romish 
 authors; but he observes, that "the Parhamentsofthe kin..dom 
 had constantly prescribed these abominable tenets of abom". 
 nable theologues." 
 
 " The Jesuit Busembaum," (says he,) '. on whom the 
 Jesuit La Croix hath written a comment, says, that it is law- 
 tul to kill a prince who is excommunicated by the Pooe i., 
 whatever country he may be found ; because the whole w^rld 
 IS under subjection to the Pope; and w'loever accepts the 
 
 ruZ woT" '""^'"' ""'"'^''^^ ' '''' ^""^^ -d ^»^- 
 It is this proposition, invented certainly in the most rac^in^ 
 
39^ 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 place of hell, which hath chiefly excited the people 'n^**"* 
 against the Jesuits. Being particularly reproached wiH^i%+ 
 tenet, so often taught, and so often disavowed by them, they 
 thought to justify themselves, by pointing out some decs.ons 
 nearly similar in St. Thomas, and other jacobins. In tact, 
 St. Thomas Aquinas. " the angelic doc.or and interpreter of 
 the divine will," (such were his titles,) advances, 'Jlh-^^an 
 apostate prince loses his right to the crown, and ought not to 
 be obeyed-that the Church may furnish him with death ; 
 and that the Emperor Julian was tolerated, only through 
 the want of power to depose him-that every heretic ought 
 of ri"ht to be destroyed-that those who deliver the sub- 
 iects%f a prince who governs tyrannically, are very com- 
 mendable persons, &c. &c." He was greatly respected ; but 
 if he had come into France in the times of Jaques C e- 
 ment, or of Ravillae, to maintain these propositions, the, 
 people would have made a pretty devil of our angelic doctor. 
 " It must be confessed that Gerson, chancellor of the uni- 
 versity, went still farther than St. Thomas ; and.the Cordelier 
 Jean Petit infinitely farther than Gerson. while many of his 
 fraternity mainUined his horrible tenets. It must be owned 
 also that the diabolical doctrine of king-killing took its rise 
 solely from the ridiculous notion long entertained by the 
 monks, that the Pope was a God upon earth, who might dis- 
 pose at pleasure of the lives and sceptres of kings. We have 
 been in this respect much beneath the Tartars, who believe in 
 the immortality of the Grand Lama. He distributes among 
 them his close-stool, the reliques of which they dry. carve 
 and kiss most devoutly. For my own part. I protest I could 
 rather for the sake of peace, carry about my neck such re- 
 liques as these, than believe that the Pope had the least au- 
 thority over the temporalities of kings, or even over mine, lu 
 any case whatever." 
 
 FINIS. 
 
 
 
 VicvRS Printer, 5, Princes SlrcC, Leico.icr Square, Luodon. 
 
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